YuGiOh: Tournament of Chaos
by HyruleKing
Summary: Kaiba hosts a second Battle City tournament, this time seeking a rare set of cards known as the Wicked gods, but it seems another group seeks the cards as well. Can Yugi and his friends save the world without the help of Pharaoh Atem? COMPLETE!
1. Return of Battle City

**Yu-Gi-Oh!: Tournament of Chaos**

_It's been three years since King of Games Yugi Moto dueled against his long-time dueling partner, 5000-year-old Egyptian Pharaoh Atem, and Atem returned to the spirit world. Many have stepped up in an effort to take Yugi's title, but all have failed. So far, the closest anyone has come to defeating Yugi is his close friend, owner of Industrial Illusions, CJ Francis, who got Yugi down to 250 life points before being defeated at the hand of the sacred Winged Dragon of Ra._

_Lately, rumors of a new set of god cards, the Wicked god Cards, have begun to emerge. Duelists young and old dream of finding these powerful cards and using them to defeat the Egyptian gods and claim Yugi's title. However, little do duelists know, these new cards may be more trouble than the god cards, especially if word of them reaches Seto Kaiba..._

Author's Note: I know that Domino City is set to be in Japan (at least in the Japanese anime and the manga) but in this story, I am following the English anime. Pay close attention to Episode 52 "The Past is Present". When Ishizu arrives in Domino City with the Egyptian Exhibit, the men at the airport say "On behalf of Domino City, let me welcome you to America." And, in Episode 9 "Duel with a Ghoul" when Kaiba crashes the Industrial Illusions satellite, if you look carefully at the map before it crashes, you can see that the Industrial Illusions mainframe is in California. So, for the purpose of this fic (and any others that may follow), Domino is in Calif. Also, This fic has no connection to my Zelda fics, so that means Hyrule doesn't exist, CJ and Saria have never known each other, and there's no such thing as the Triforce Destiny Cards. Also, CJ and Kylie have a different history with each other in this than the one that they have in "HCIS".

**CHAPTER ONE: Return of Battle City**

"And, on this side of the arena... Stepping up for her shot at the title 'King of Games'... Challenger of the great Yugi Moto... Kylie Howard!!" A boy about the age of 21 stood in an arena in Domino City, California, across from a girl about the age of 16. The boy wore a blue jacket, and jeans. He had spiked black hair with red tips and spiked blonde bangs. Attached to his arm was a small platform that had a slot for a deck of cards and a slot for a discard pile. Attached to it was a 'blade' that had five small slots and five platforms, giving it the ability to hold ten cards. The entire device was known as a Duel Disk. The boy was the King of Games: the famous Yugi Moto.

The girl wore a black tank top, jeans, and had brown hair and hazel eyes. On her arm was a Duel Disk as well. She was Yugi's challenger: Kylie Howard. Another boy, about 21, walked over to her. He had brown hair, blue eyes and glasses, and he wore a red t-shirt and jeans. He was CJ Francis, owner of the Duel Monsters Card Game production company, Industrial Illusions, and close friend of both Yugi Moto and Maximillion Pegasus.

"Okay, Kylie." CJ said. "Yugi is a tough duelist. Especially with the Egyptian god cards. Be careful, babe."

"Don't worry, CJ." Kylie said. "I'll win this."

"Don't get cocky." CJ said. He kissed Kylie and walked away.

"Duelists ready?" The ref asked, as the two duelists activated their Duel Disks. "Get set... Duel!!"

"I hope you're ready to lose your title, Yugi." Kylie said.

"I'm not going to be losing my title, Kylie." Yugi said, as he drew a card. "I summon Skilled Dark Magician (ATK: 1900)." A magician in a blue robe then appeared in front of Yugi. "Next, I lay one card face down and end my turn."

"I summon Spirit Ryu (ATK: 1000)." Kylie said, summoning a dragon with a blue head and semi-transparent body. "Next, I discard two dragons from my hand to increase my Ryu's power (ATK: 3000). Spirit Ryu, attack Skilled Dark Magician!!" Yugi watched as Kylie's dragon launched an energy blast at his mage, wiping it out (LP: 8000 - 1100). "Now, I lay three cards face down, and since my hand has been emptied, I can draw three new cards to refresh it. Your move."

_That was a good move._ Yugi thought. _Her relationship with CJ shows in her dueling skill. He's definitely been training her._ He drew a card. "I lay one monster in defense mode. Go."

"I summon Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV 4 (ATK: 1600)." Kylie said, summoning a metallic silver dragon. "Horus, attack that defense! Spirit Ryu, attack Yugi's life points with a direct attack!!" Yugi watched as his defense monster was destroyed and Kylie's dragon launched an energy blast at him (LP: 6900 - 1000). "Now, since my turn is over, and he destroyed a monster, my dragon grows in strength... to become Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV 6 (ATK: 2300)." Then, Kylie's dragon opened its wings and took to the skies.

"You think that scares me?" Yugi asked. "I lay one card face down and end my turn."

"I activate the Spell Card, Giant Trunade!!" Kylie smiled. "Now, all spells and traps on the field return to their owner's hand! Next... Spirit Ryu! Horus!! Attack Yugi directly!!" Yugi stumbled as both of Kylie's dragon shot fireballs at him, severely cutting his life points (LP: 5900 - 3300). "Now, I lay five cards face down, allowing me to draw three new cards. Make this move count, Yugi. Because if you don't, I'll be walking out as the Queen of Games."

"Don't count on it..." Yugi said, reaching for his deck. _Heart of the Cards... Guide me..._ He drew a card. _That'll do._ "I summon a monster in defense mode and lay two cards face down. Go."

"First, I discard Thunder Dragon to the graveyard to get two from my deck." Kylie said. "Horus, attack Yugi's defense!!"

"I reveal my trap! Spellb-"

"Not so fast, Yugi! I activate Trap Jammer to negate that trap!" Kylie said, as her dragon wiped out Yugi's defense. "Spirit Ryu! Attack Yugi directly!!" Yugi stumbled back as Kylie's dragon blasted him (LP: 2600 - 1000). "Now, go. And make this count."

_I will..._ Yugi thought, as he drew a card. "I activate Dark Hole!!"

"I reveal Magic Jammer!" Kylie said, discarding a card. "So your Dark Hole is destroyed."

"I end my turn." Yugi said.

"I pass." Kylie said. _One more turn, and I'll be walking out of here with your title, Yugi..._

"I place a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "Go."

"I equip Spirit Ryu with Black Pendant to increase its strength (ATK: 1500)." Kylie said. "Spirit Ryu, wipe out that defense!" Yugi wiped sweat from his brow as his defense was blown away. "Now, I'll end my turn. But, be ready to lose next turn."

Yugi drew a card and frowned. _She may be right... I've got nothing I can do..._ "Go."

Kylie drew a card. "I didn't get what I need yet, so you have another turn."

_Kylie must be waiting for her ultimate card... But she better be careful. Yugi's not the type of duelist to stay down for long, and if she toys with him for too long, he'll just fight back stronger. _CJ thought.

"I pass." Yugi said.

_Or not._ CJ thought.

Kylie drew a card and smiled. "It's over, Yugi... I just drew what I need. I activate the spell card... Polymerization!!" A black vortex then appeared behind Kylie. Her Spirit Ryu and her Horus were then pulled into it. "I fuse Spirit Ryu and Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV 6..." She then held up her hand. "...With Hyozanru, Spirit Ryu and Tyrant Dragon from hand..." Then, a large dragon appeared on the field. It had five heads: one made of fire, one of a sea serpent, one that was metallic, one of a dark dragon, and one of golden dragon with spikes atop its head. "...To summon my ultimate creature... The Five Headed Mythic Dragon (ATK: 5000)!!"

_**Meanwhile...**_

A brown-haired, blue-eyed boy in a light brown suit about the age of 21 sat in an office in a tall building in downtown Domino City, California. In front of him was a computer screen that showed him the legendary Egyptian god cards. He was Seto Kaiba, president of KaibaCorp. On a TV nearby was the duel between Yugi and Kylie. Kaiba gasped as three new monsters appeared on the computer screen. They resembled the Egyptian gods, but they were darker and skeletal. Kaiba looked at them and smiled.

"The Wicked gods?" Kaiba wondered, looking at the text below the pictures. "These look powerful... With these, I could beat Yugi. But, how will I get ahold of them... Wait! I've got it. Battle City 2! Of course, I'll have to invite Yugi, so I can win his god cards. And, CJ will have to come too. I'm sure he knows the location of these Wicked gods, being the game's current designer. And, I'll invite some other strong duelists, since that'll attract the Rare Hunters, since they may have the cards. But, who else?" Kaiba's attention was then grabbed by the TV, where he saw Kylie's last move.

"Five Headed Mythic Dragon, attack Yugi directly and end this duel!!" Kaiba gasped as he watched the Five Headed Dragon wipe out Yugi (LP: 0).

"Impossible! Someone beat Yugi!" Kaiba gasped. _She's coming to the tournament too! Especially with that Five Headed Dragon._

_**Back at Domino Arena...**_

Kylie an Yugi stepped out of the arena. CJ walked over to Kylie and hugged her.

"Wow. That was an amazing duel, Kylie." He said. "I'm jealous."

"Why?" Kylie asked.

"You beat Yugi, and I couldn't." CJ said.

"I guess I'm just that good." Kylie said.

"Don't brag." CJ said. A group of photographers and reporters rushed over to Kylie and the boys.

"Miss Howard, what was your strategy going into the duel?"

"Where did you get the Five Headed Dragon?"

"Were you prepared in the case that Yugi may have summoned any of the Egyptian gods?"

"Where did you learn to duel?"

"Do you have a dueling coach?" CJ stepped in front of Kylie.

"No questions right now." He said. "Any questions can be referred to me at Industrial Illusions." He turned to Yugi. "We'll catch you later, Yugi."

"Bye." Yugi said, as CJ and Kylie walked away.

_**Later...**_

CJ and Kylie walked up to a small white house just down the street from the Industrial Illusions building. Sticking in the door was a small white envelope. CJ took it out and opened it. He pulled out a piece of paper and read it aloud.

"_CJ and Kylie,_

_You have received this notice since you are among the top duelists in the world. KaibaCorp will be hosting a Duel Monsters Tournament beginning this Friday at noon, known as Battle City 2.0. Make sure you register by this Thursday to enter my tournament. When you do, you will receive a Locator Card and rule book._

_ Seto Kaiba"_

_**The next morning...  
**_RING! RING!

CJ walked out into his kitchen and picked up the phone.

"This is CJ." He answered.

"Hey, CJ. It's Yugi."

"Hey, Yugi. What's up?" CJ asked.

"Did you get an invite to Kaiba's new tournament?" Yugi asked.

"Yeah. Kylie too." CJ said. Kylie groggily walked out into the kitchen, in a lacy pink pajama top and short shorts. She yawned and rubbed her eyes.

"What about me?" She asked sleepily.

"Talkin' to Yugi, babe." CJ said. He then pointed to a stack of papers on the kitchen table. "Feel like answering questions?" Kylie looked at the papers.

"Not right now." She said wearily. "Let me eat breakfast first." She then grabbed a bowl of cereal and sat down at the kitchen table.

"Hey Yugi, did Joey get an invite too?" He asked.

"I don't know. I haven't heard from him." Yugi said. "Hey, do you and Kylie want to grab something to eat tonight?"

"Let me ask her.." CJ turned to Kylie. "Hey, kid, you feel like grabbing supper with Yugi tonight?"

"Sure." Kylie said. "But, he has to bring Tea with him."

"She said yes, as long as you bring your girl." CJ joked.

"Dude, you know Tea and I aren't dating." Yugi said.

"What the heck are you waiting for, man?" CJ asked.

"I-I don't know." Yugi replied.

"Dude, I'm getting you smashed tonight and you're getting laid, Yug." CJ joked.

"I don't think so." Yugi said.

"I'll take you up on that offer." Kylie said.

"Nice try, kid." CJ said. "But you're still too young."

"Hey, man, I gotta go. I gotta call Tea, Joey and Serenity." Yugi said. "I'll talk to you later."

"Okay. Bye." CJ said, hanging up the phone. He sat down at the table across from Kylie and pulled out his deck. "Let's get you some more practice before Kaiba's tournament."

_**Meanwhile...**_

A man with blond hair and blue eyes in a silver robe and American flag bandana sat in a warehouse with a group of duelists in silver robes. On of the robed men walked over to the blond man.

"Sir Keith, we just got word of a powerful group of cards." The man said.

"What cards?" the man, former intercontinental champion Bandit Keith, said.

"There called the Wicked gods, sir." The robed man said. "They are said to rival the power of the Egyptian god cards."

"Do we have any clues as to where these cards may be?" Keith asked.

"Our first theory was Industrial Illusions." The man said. "But one of our own infiltrated the company as a security guard and searched the card safes. We were unable to find the Wicked gods, but we did find these for you, sir." The man handed some cards to Keith.

"Perfect. I'll use these in KaibaCorp's upcoming Battle City to get a deck full of rare cards." Keith said. "Now, do you have any other theory as to where the cards might be?"

"We were researching them, and we they may be hidden around the country." The man said. "One in a museum in Boston, Massachusetts, and the other at the Smithsonian Institute. We've already deployed duelists to find them."

"Good." Keith said. "Now, my Neo Ghouls... Go and enter Kaiba's Battle City tournament!"

_**Later...**_

A pair of Neo Ghouls walked into Keith's warehouse.

"Sir. We found two of the cards." One Ghoul said.

"We were unable to locate the final card." The other said.

"That's fine." Keith said. "That kid... CJ. The one who runs Industrial Illusions... He must know where the other one is. Now, Arkana... Duel me and test these cards." A man in a red suit, red top hat, and striped green and yellow mask stepped forward and activated his Duel Disk.

---

"I sacrifice my two monsters to summon Dark Magician (ATK: 2500)!" Arkana said, summoning a white-haired magician in a red robe. "Dark Magician, attack Master Keith directly!" Keith smiled as his life points were decimated by the mage (LP: 2900 - 2500).

---

"I sacrifice my three monsters..." Bandit Keith said. "To summon my second Wicked god...." Arkana gasped as the monster began to take form before him.

---

"Now, my Wicked gods, wipe out Arkana!!" Arkana gasped as the Wicked gods struck him, knocking him to the ground (LP: 8000 - 8000).

"Incredible!!"

"Those cards are powerful!!"

"With these, Master Keith will be unbeatable!!"

"With these cards..." Keith said. "I WILL become the King of Games!!"

_______________________________________________________________________

A/N: Yes, I understand that chapter was kind of short. Other than the duel between Kylie and Yugi, this chapter was just intended to set up the storyline. I will try to make the remaining chapters longer.

Also, to explain the age situation, before any crazy fans try to kill me, always remember one key detail about my fanfics: I GO BY THE ENGLISH DUBBED ANIME IN THE U.S., NOT THE JAPANESE ANIME. When Yu-Gi-Oh first premiered here in the U.S., I read on the Yu-Gi-Oh website that Yugi is a freshman in high school. So that makes him 14 or 15 years old. I chose to say he was 14. Then, in Yu-Gi-Oh The Movie, set after Battle City, it said "In the three short years since he's started playing Duel Monsters...". That makes Yugi 17 (because the start of those three years is when Yugi beat Kaiba with Exodia... the beginning of the series. He could've been playing longer than three years, but he's only been playing pro for three years.) So, let's assume that the events of the KaibaCorp Grand Prix, Dawn of the Duel and the Paradius Battle (the Orichalcos Saga) all took place over the course of a year. That would make Yugi 18 at the time of End Game when he duels Atem and Atem returns to the spirit world. Add three years to that, and it makes him 21.

_______________________________________________________________________


	2. The Hunter

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_And, on this side of the arena... Stepping up for her shot at the title 'King of Games'... Challenger of the great Yugi Moto... Kylie Howard!!" A boy about the age of 21 stood in an arena in Domino City, California, across from a girl about the age of 16. The boy wore a blue jacket, and jeans. He had spiked black hair with red tips and spiked blonde bangs. Attached to his arm was a small platform that had a slot for a deck of cards and a slot for a discard pile. Attached to it was a 'blade' that had five small slots and five platforms, giving it the ability to hold ten cards. The entire device was known as a Duel Disk. The boy was the King of Games: the famous Yugi Moto._

_The girl wore a black tank top, jeans, and had brown hair and hazel eyes. On her arm was a Duel Disk as well. She was Yugi's challenger: Kylie Howard._

_Kylie drew a card and smiled. "It's over, Yugi... I just drew what I need. I activate the spell card... Polymerization!!" A black vortex then appeared behind Kylie. Her Spirit Ryu and her Horus were then pulled into it. "I fuse Spirit Ryu and Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV 6..." She then held up her hand. "...With Hyozanru, Spirit Ryu and Tyrant Dragon from hand..." Then, a large dragon appeared on the field. It had five heads: one made of fire, one of a sea serpent, one that was metallic, one of a dark dragon, and one of golden dragon with spikes atop its head. "...To summon my ultimate creature... The Five Headed Mythic Dragon (ATK: 5000)!!"_

_---_

_A brown-haired, blue-eyed boy in a light brown suit about the age of 21 sat in an office in a tall building in downtown Domino City, California. In front of him was a computer screen that showed him the legendary Egyptian god cards. He was Seto Kaiba, president of KaibaCorp. On a TV nearby was the duel between Yugi and Kylie. Kaiba gasped as three new monsters appeared on the computer screen. They resembled the Egyptian gods, but they were darker and skeletal. Kaiba looked at them and smiled._

_  
"The Wicked gods?" Kaiba wondered, looking at the text below the pictures. "These look powerful... With these, I could beat Yugi. But, how will I get ahold of them... Wait! I've got it. Battle World! Of course, I'll have to invite Yugi, so I can win his god cards. And, CJ will have to come too. I'm sure he knows the location of these Wicked gods, being the game's current designer. And, I'll invite some other strong duelists, since that'll attract the Rare Hunters, since they may have the cards. But, who else?" Kaiba's attention was then grabbed by the TV, where he saw Kylie's last move._

"_Five Headed Mythic Dragon, attack Yugi directly and end this duel!!" Kaiba gasped as he watched the Five Headed Dragon wipe out Yugi (LP: 0)._

_  
"Impossible! Someone beat Yugi!" Kaiba gasped. She's coming to the tournament too! Especially with that Five Headed Dragon._

_---_

"_Hey, CJ. It's Yugi."_

_  
"Hey, Yugi. What's up?" CJ asked._

_  
"Did you get an invite to Kaiba's new tournament?" Yugi asked._

_  
"Yeah. Kylie too." CJ said. Kylie groggily walked out into the kitchen, in her pajamas. She yawned and rubbed her eyes._

"_What about me?" She asked sleepily._

_  
"Talkin' to Yugi, babe." CJ said. He then pointed to a stack of papers on the kitchen table. "Feel like answering questions?" Kylie looked at the papers._

_  
"Not right now." She said wearily. "Let me eat breakfast first." She then grabbed a bowl of cereal and sat down at the kitchen table._

"_Hey Yugi, did Joey get an invite too?" He asked._

_  
"I don't know. I haven't heard from him." Yugi said. "Hey, do you and Kylie want to grab something to eat tonight?"_

"_Let me ask her.." CJ turned to Kylie. "Hey, kid, you feel like grabbing supper with Yugi tonight?"_

"_Sure." Kylie said._

_---_

"_Sir Keith, we just got word of a powerful group of cards." The man said._

_  
"What cards?" the man, former intercontinental champion Bandit Keith, said._

"_There called the Wicked gods, sir." The robed man said. "They are said to rival the power of the Egyptian god cards."_

"_Do we have any clues as to where these cards may be?" Keith asked._

"_Our first theory was Industrial Illusions." The man said. "But one of our own infiltrated the company as a security guard and searched the card safes. We were unable to find the Wicked gods, but we did find these for you, sir." The man handed some cards to Keith._

_  
"Perfect. I'll use these in KaibaCorp's upcoming Battle City to get a deck full of rare cards." Keith said. "Now, do you have any other theory as to where the cards might be?"_

_  
"We were researching them, and we they may be hidden around the country." The man said. "One in a museum in Boston, Massachusetts, and the other at the Smithsonian Institute."_

"_Good." Keith said. "Now, my Neo Ghouls... Go and enter Kaiba's Battle City tournament!"_

**CHAPTER TWO: The Hunter**

CJ, Kylie, Yugi walked down the streets of Domino with a blond-haired, brown-eyed boy in a white t-shirt, jeans and dog tags. He was Joey Wheeler, Yugi's best friend. The four walked into a neaby building, where a KaibaCorp employee sat behind a counter with a computer.

"We're here to register for the Battle City tournament." Yugi said. "I'm Yugi Moto." The KC Employee typed some info into the computer.

"Yugi Moto... Yes, you qualify." The Employee said. "Here is your Locator Card and rule book. Next." Joey stepped forward.

"Joey Wheeler's the name." He said.

"Joey Wheeler... Yes, you qualify as well." The man said, handing Joey a Locator Card and rule bok.

"CJ Francis." CJ said.

"Ah, yes, the owner of Industrial Illusions." The man said. "Mr Kaiba is looking forward to seeing you in the tournament. I'm assuming this is Miss Howard?" The man looked at Kylie.

"Yes." Kylie said.

"Yes, you two qualify." The man said, holding out two Locator Cards and rule books. "Good luck in the tournament." The four then walked out. The man pulled out a cell phone and dialed a number. "Mr Kaiba. Yugi Moto, Joey Wheeler, CJ Francis and Kylie Howard just registered." He then dialed another number. "Hey, Seeker. The girl with the Five Headed Dragon just left."

Outside, the four were reviewing their rule books.

"It looks like the rules are the same as Kaiba's first Battle City." Yugi said.

"Except you need 8 Locator Cards to enter the finals." CJ said. "I wish I had made it all the way before."

"You're a great duelist, CJ." Yugi said. "What happened?"

"I had to drop out to take care of some family business." CJ said. "Max needed me back in Duelist Kingdom."

"Wait a sec, CJ... Are you tellin' me that you and Pegasus are related?" Joey asked.

"Well, not really." CJ said. "My dad used to work for Pegasus, and Pegasus and I became good friends. But, after my dad died, Pegasus was like an older brother to me. That's why he gave me control of Industrial Illusions when he retired."

"Wow, that's pretty cool." Joey said.

"I know." CJ said.

"Hey, I gotta go take care of some stuff." Kylie said. "I'll see you guys tonight at the restaurant." She turned to CJ. "I'll meet you there, too, 'kay?"

"Yeah, that's fine." CJ said. The two kissed and Kylie ran off.

_**Later...**_

Kylie walked into a cemetary in South Domino City. She walked over to a pair a gravestones and laid a bouqet of flowers at the bottom. The stones read:

Julia Howard

August 11, 1968 - July 2, 2003

Beloved mother and wife

Nathan Howard

March 9, 1970 - July 2, 2003

Beloved father and husband

Kylie wiped the tears from her eyes as she looked at the stones.

"Mom... Dad... I miss you guys." She said. "But, don't worry about me. CJ's taking great care of me. He taught me how to play Duel Monsters and I even beat the King of Games." She wiped her eyes and stood up. "I promise I'll come back soon."

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Any idea where Kylie went?" Yugi asked.

"Domino Cemetary." CJ said. "She doesn't like to bring this up, but today's the sixth anniversary of her parent's death."

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened?" Yugi asked.

"Well, her parents went out for their usual weekly date night, so I was called to babysit Kylie." CJ said. "That's how we know each other so well. I started babysitting her when she was 8. Somehow, I knew something was wrong that night, but I didn't know what. We got a knock on the door around 10:30 that night. I had already put Kylie to bed when I answered the door, and it's a good thing I had. It was the police. Kylie's parents had gotten into a car accident when a drunk driver ran them off the road. They crashed through a wooden fence and off a bridge. The other driver hit a telephone pole. Neither of Kylie's parents survived, but the drunk driver walked away with only minor scratches. The scene was gruesome. Kylie's mother was somehow decapitated and her father was impaled in the chest by a piece of the fence that went through the windshield."

"Yeah, I heard about that story on the news." Yugi said. "I never realized that was her parents in that car."

"Me neither..." Joey said. "I mean, I didn't know her then, and after a while, I forgot all about the accident, so I never made the connection."

"I didn't have the heart to wake her up with such bad news." CJ said. "I let her sleep, and the next morning I told her. She took it better than I thought she would, but to this day, I'm still not sure she's completely over it. In fact, I still find myself thinking about it from time to time. But, hey, I gotta go. I'll see you guys at the restaurant. I wanna get to the cemetary and see if I can catch Kylie before she leaves. I wanna be with her today to comfort her."

"Okay. We'll see you later." Yugi said, as he and Joey walked away.

_**Later...**_

CJ walked into the cemetary and over to Kylie's parents' graves, but she had already left.

_Poor Kylie..._ He thought. _I wish something could've been done._

---

_CJ walked over to the door and opened it to see two Domino Police officers standing there._

"_Is this the residence of Julia and Nathan Howard?" One officer asked._

_  
"Yes, but they're not home." CJ said. "They're daughter is, but she's asleep in her room."_

_  
"Who are you?" The officer asked._

_  
"I'm the babysitter the Howards hired to babysit their daughter." CJ said._

_  
"Does she have any family she can go stay with?" The officer asked._

_  
"No. Her only other family members are living in Italy." CJ said. "Why?"_

"_Well, Julia and Nathan were in a car accident just a short time ago." One officer said. "They were run off the road by a drunk driver."_

"_Oh no..." CJ said. "Don't tell me..."_

"_We're sorry, but neither of them survived." One officer said. Little did anyone know, Kylie was sitting at the top of the stairs, hiding behind the railing, where she could hear everything._

"_M-mom...D-dad..." She ran back into her room, closed the door, laid down on her bed, and cried herself to sleep._

"_Thank you, officers..." CJ said, a sad look on his face._

"_We're sorry for your loss, sir." The officers said, before walking away. CJ closed the door and sat down on the couch. He watched the news for a little while, watching the live reports on the accident, before finally falling asleep._

_-_

_The next morning, Kylie walked downstairs to see CJ sitting at the kitchen table. Acting like she knew nothing, she looked at him and asked:_

_  
"Where are Mom and Dad?"_

"_Sit down, Kylie." CJ said. "We have to talk." Kylie sat down at the table and CJ told her about her parents. She began to cry. CJ walked over to her, picked her up, carried her over to the couch, and sat down. She sat on his lap and he held her close until she finally stopped crying._

---

_I hope she's okay..._ CJ thought. He walked away, and headed back toward home.

_**Later that night...**_

Kylie roamed the streets of Domino City, on her way to meet CJ and the others for supper. She decided to take a shortcut down an alley, when a man in a dark blue robe cut her off.

"Hey, do you mind? I need to be somewhere!" Kylie said. The man smiled.

"You're not going anywhere." He said. "You have something I want, and I'm not letting you through until we duel for it." Kylie reluctantly activated her Duel Disk.

"Just so I know, who are you?" She asked.

"I used to be a Rare Hunter, until they disbanded." The man said. "Just call me Seeker."

"All right, Seeker." Kylie said. "Let's duel!"

"Duel!" Seeker said.

"I'll start by summon Masked Dragon (ATK: 1400) and laying a card face down." Kylie said, summoning a white dragon with a red underside. "Go."

Seeker drew a card. _If this fool only knew what was waiting in my deck..._ "I summon Moai Interceptor Cannons (DEF: 2000)." Seeker said, summoning a group of stone head statues. "Go."

"I sacrifice Masked Dragon to summon Curse of Dragon (ATK: 2000)!" Kylie said, summoning a golden dragon. "Next, I lay one card face down. Go."

"I sacrifice Moai Interceptor Cannons to summon Guardian Sphinx (DEF: 2400)!" Seeker said, summoning a sphinx in a golden mask and headdress. "Next, I'll use it's ability to flip it face down. Go."

"I summon Spirit Ryu (ATK: 1000)." Kylie said, summoning a blue dragon with a solid head and wings and a spirit-like body. "Next, I discard two dragons to increase my Ryu's attack power by 2000 (ATK: 3000). Now, I activate my face down card: Dragon's Rage! Now, when my dragons attack, they can deal Piercing Damage. Ryu, attack Seeker's defense! Curse of Dragon, go for his life points!" Seeker stumbled back as Kylie's dragons attacked him (LP: 4000 - 2600). "Go."

"I lay one card face down and summon a monster in defense mode." Seeker said. "Go."

"Curse of Dragon, attack his defense!" Kylie said.

"Activate trap: Compulsory Evacuation Device!" Seeker said. "Now, your Dragon returns to your hand."

"Fine. I'll end my turn by sacrificing my Ryu to re-summon Curse of Dragon (ATK: 2000)." Kylie said.

"I sacrifice my defense monster to summon Criosphinx (DEF: 2400)!" Seeker said, summoning a monster with the head of a sheep, the torso of a human, and the body of a pegasus. "Go."

_What's the deal with this guy?_ Kylie wondered. _All he's doing is playing monsters with high defense while trying to prevent me from summoning anything strong. He must have something big in the works._ "I pass." Kylie said.

"I lay a card face down and end my turn." Seeker said.

_Man! I need more dragons!_ Kylie thought. _I have Polymerization, but I don't have enough dragons to make my Five-Headed Dragon. And, since I'm sure that's what he wants, I want to crush him with it..._ "I pass."

"I sacrifice Criosphinx to special summon Exxod, Master of the Guard (DEF: 4000)!!" Seeker said, summoning a large golden human-like monster garbed in an Egyptian headdress and golden armor. "Go."

_Great... Now I have to summon my dragon if I want to get past that thing._ Kylie thought. "I... pass."

"Good." Seeker said, drawing a card. "Because it's all over... You'll be handing over that Five-Headed Dragon." Seeker removed Exxod from his Duel Disk and placed five new cards on the monster spaces. Kylie gasped as a monster similar to Exxod appeared behind Seeker.

"Oh no.... That's what you were waiting for..." She said.

"I summon Exodia the Forbidden One!!" Seeker exclaimed. "Exodia, OBLITERATE!!" Kylie screamed as Exodia struck her, knocking her to the ground and scattering her cards everywhere. Seeker walked over and grabbed her Five-Headed Dragon.

"How... How did you get such a rare monster?" Kylie asked.

"Like I said, I was a Rare Hunter. We thrive on relieving duelists of their rarest cards." Seeker said. "I'm so powerful that I have assembled three complete sets of Exodia in my deck."

"You won them all?" Kylie asked.

"I acquire cards by whatever force necessary." Seeker said.

"That's sick! You creep!" Kylie said.

"Well, I've taken my prize, so I'll be leaving now." With that, Seeker vanished.

_**Meanwhile...**_

CJ stood outside a restaurant in nothern Domino. Yugi walked outside.

"Is she here yet?" He asked.

"No..." CJ said. "I'm worried. Kylie's never late. What if... What if something happened to her?"

"I'm sure she's fine." Yugi said. "Maybe she's with her parents."

"I went by the cemetary earlier." CJ said. "She already left."

"Oh no..." Yugi said.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**

_______________________________________________________________________


	3. CJ VS The Rare Hunter

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

_Kylie roamed the streets of Domino City, on her way to meet CJ and the others for supper. She decided to take a shortcut down an alley, when a man in a dark blue robe cut her off._

_  
"Hey, do you mind? I need to be somewhere!" Kylie said. The man smiled._

_  
"You're not going anywhere." He said. "You have something I want, and I'm not letting you through until we duel for it." Kylie reluctantly activated her Duel Disk._

"_Just so I know, who are you?" She asked._

_  
"I used to be a Rare Hunter, until they disbanded." The man said. "Just call me Seeker."_

"_All right, Seeker." Kylie said. "Let's duel!"_

_---_

"_I summon Spirit Ryu (ATK: 1000)." Kylie said, summoning a blue dragon with a solid head and wings and a spirit-like body. "Next, I discard two dragons to increase my Ryu's attack power by 2000 (ATK: 3000). Now, I activate my face down card: Dragon's Rage! Now, when my dragons attack, they can deal Piercing Damage. Ryu, attack Seeker's defense! Curse of Dragon, go for his life points!" Seeker stumbled back as Kylie's dragons attacked him (LP: 4000 - 2600). "Go."_

"_I lay one card face down and summon a monster in defense mode." Seeker said. "Go."_

_---_

"_I sacrifice my defense monster to summon Criosphinx (DEF: 2400)!" Seeker said, summoning a monster with the head of a sheep, the torso of a human, and the body of a Pegasus. "Go."_

_What's the deal with this guy? Kylie wondered. All he's doing is playing monsters with high defense while trying to prevent me from summoning anything strong. He must have something big in the works. "I pass." Kylie said._

_  
"I lay a card face down and end my turn." Seeker said._

_Man! I need more dragons! Kylie thought. I have Polymerization, but I don't have enough dragons to make my Five-Headed Dragon. And, since I'm sure that's what he wants, I want to crush him with it... "I pass."_

"_I sacrifice Criosphinx to special summon Exxod, Master of the Guard (DEF: 4000)!!" Seeker said, summoning a large golden human-like monster garbed in an Egyptian headdress and golden armor. "Go."_

_Great... Now I have to summon my dragon if I want to get past that thing. Kylie thought. "I... pass."_

"_Good." Seeker said, drawing a card. "Because it's all over... You'll be handing over that Five-Headed Dragon." Seeker removed Exxod from his Duel Disk and placed five new cards on the monster spaces. Kylie gasped as a monster similar to Exxod appeared behind Seeker._

"_Oh no.... That's what you were waiting for..." She said._

_  
"I summon Exodia the Forbidden One!!" Seeker exclaimed. "Exodia, OBLITERATE!!" Kylie screamed as Exodia struck her, knocking her to the ground and scattering her cards everywhere. Seeker walked over and grabbed her Five-Headed Dragon._

"_Well, I've taken my prize, so I'll be leaving now." With that, Seeker vanished._

_---_

_CJ stood outside a restaurant in northern Domino. Yugi walked outside._

"_Is she here yet?" He asked._

"_No..." CJ said. "I'm worried. Kylie's never late. What if... What if something happened to her?"_

"_I'm sure she's fine." Yugi said. "Maybe she's with her parents."_

_  
"I went by the cemetery earlier." CJ said. "She already left."_

_  
"Oh no..." Yugi said._

**CHAPTER THREE: CJ VS The Rare Hunter, Part 1**

"This is bad. I haven't seen Kylie since she left us and I'm getting worried." CJ said. Joey walked out.

"I'm sure she's fine." He said.

"I don't know." CJ said. "She's never late." It was then that Kylie came walking over. She had her Duel Disk on, still active, and her deck was missing.

"Look! It's her!" Yugi said. CJ rushed over to her and pulled her into his arms.

"Kylie! Thank God you're all right." He then noticed the Duel Disk and missing deck. "What happened? Where's your deck?" Kylie reached into her pocket and pulled out a mess of jumbled cards.

"Right here, minus my Five-Headed Dragon." Kylie said.

"What?!"

"Some creep ambushed me on my way here about an hour and a half ago." Kylie said. "He beat me in a duel and took my dragon. He said his name was Seeker and he called himself a Rare Hunter."

"What? A Rare Hunter?" Yugi asked.

"I thought the disbanded when you beat Marik." Joey said.

"Me too." Yugi said.

"Maybe they did." CJ said. "Maybe this Seeker guy is working on his own. But, either way, he's going down and I'm getting Kylie's dragon back."

"And if there's any more Rare Hunters out there, we'll help you put an end to them once and for all." Yugi said.

_**The next day...**_

Groups of duelists were scattered all across Domino City, all wearing Duel Disks. CJ was standing around with Kylie, Yugi, Joey and Serenity. A blond haired, purple eyed woman about the age of 24 in a white tube top, purple jacket, skirt and boots walked over.

"Hey, Yugi." The woman, champion duelist Mai Valentine, said. She looked around at the other duelists. "Wow, this place is starting to look like the last Battle City."

"Yeah, I know." Yugi said, looking at a blue haired boy about Yugi's age dressed in shorts, a green shirt with a beetle on it, and gold glasses. "There's Weevil Underwood."

Joey then looked over at a brown haired boy about the same age, in a green shirt, tan vest, jeans and red hat. "And that's Rex Raptor."

Mai then looked over at a tanned, young man, about the age of 22, with spiked black hair, a blue tank top, blue shorts and a blue headband with white markings that resembled waves. "And there's Mako Tsunami." Kaiba flew overhead in his blimp. A TV screen on it lit up to show Kaiba's face.

"Greeting duelists, welcome to Battle City." Kaiba said.

"That sounds like Kaiba." Rex said.

"Where is he?" Mako asked.

"Kaiba?" Weevil wondered.

"Where is his voice coming from?"

"There he is!" CJ said, pointing up at Kaiba's blimp.

"It's time to put your dueling skills to the test. I hope none of you entered my tournament looking for friendly competition. Battle City's gonna be an all out war. Before my Battle City tournament begins, I thought I'd let you all know what you're in for, in case you wanna back out now. First, let's talk about the most important duel. The loser of the duel is forced to hand over their rarest card to the winner. If you don't want to risk your precious cards, then I suggest you forfeit now." Kaiba said.

"Bring it on, Kaiba!" Rex shouted.

"So, the more duels I win, the more rare cards I acquire for my deck..." Weevil said.

"By the seven seas, I accept your challenge!" Mako exclaimed.

"Taking cards away from these losers sounds like fun." Mai smirked.

"And, anyone who's foolish enough can challenge me to a duel, because I'll also be competing in this tournament." Kaiba added.

"Thought so." Yugi said.

"But don't get your hopes up, because I intend to win, and there's one duelist out there I can't wait to defeat." Kaiba added.

"You're on, Kaiba!" Yugi and Kylie exclaimed. They looked at each other and chuckled.

"Speaking of winning, only the eight best duelists will make it to the final round. And these finals will be held in a hidden location."

"Then how do we get there?" Rex wondered.

"No one will show up if the location's hidden!" Mako said.

"In order to find the finals, you'll need these locator cards. You've each received one, but don't get too excited, because one's not enough. You'll need eight to make it to the finals. When eight are stacked together, they make a map of Battle City revealing the location to you. But the tournament finals are a long time away, and most of you will be eliminated long before that. Okay, everything I just said and more can be found in my tournament rule book. Remember, only one duelist can win and claim the title of number one duelist in the world."

"And that'll be me." Mai said.

"That'll be me!!" Mako, Weevil and Rex exclaimed.

"There's no way I'm losing my title." Kylie said.

"If I have anything to do with it, you will." CJ smiled.

"Now, get ready duelists... Let the tournament begin!" Kaiba said. Everyone cheered.

"Good luck, Mai." Yugi said. The two shook hands and Mai walked away. CJ looked around.

"Now, where is that Seeker guy?" He wondered. His eyes then caught a man with spiked white hair, a blue shirt, black pants, and a dark blue cape.

"That's him!" Kylie exclaimed. "That's the scum who stole my dragon!"

"Correction: _Won_ your dragon." Seeker said. "And, you have nothing that's of any use to me. But, how about your friend? I would love to hunt the owner of Industrial Illusions and snare his Blue Eyes White Dragon."

"It's a deal, Seeker!" CJ said. "Now, as my first Battle City opponent, when you lose, you'll hand over your Locator Card and Kylie's dragon. And, if you win, I'll hand over my locator card and Blue Eyes White Dragon."

"Very well..." Seeker said.

"LET'S DUEL!"

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Beaming Duel Information to KaibaCorp mainframe..." Inside KaibaCorp, Kaiba sat in a large room full of computers with a young boy about the age of 15, who had long spiked black hair and wore a yellow-and-blue-striped t-shirt and tan pants. He was Mokuba Kaiba, Seto Kaiba's younger brother.

"How fitting that CJ would compete in the very first duel of my second Battle City tournament." Kaiba said. "And against a Rare Hunter, no less."

"The other duels are starting now, too." Mokuba said. "With our satellite monitoring system, we'll know immediately if anyone uses one of the three Wicked god cards."

"Good." Kaiba said.

_**Back in the duel...**_

"I'll start!" CJ said. "I activate Rain of Mercy, increasing both of our life points by 1000 (LP: 5000 [x2]). Next, I summon Lord of Dragons (ATK: 1200)." A man in golden dragon-like armor and a blue cape appeared on the field. "Your move, Seeker."

_Perfect... I already have two pieces of Exodia in my hand..._ Seeker thought. _Once I assemble all five pieces of the Forbidden One, I'll obliterate CJ and claim his Blue Eyes White Dragon once and for all!_

"Get ready for this!" Seeker said. "I sumon Gear Golem the Moving Fortress (DEF: 2200)." Then, a gold machine with two large spiked silver shields appeared on Seeker's field. "Go."

"I lay one card face down and switch Lord of Dragons to defense mode (DEF: 1100)." CJ said. "Go."

"I'll fortify my defense by summoning Stone Statue of the Aztecs (DEF: 2000)." Seeker said, summoning a large statue composed of green and blue bricks. "Go."

"I lay a card face down." CJ said. "Go."

"I activate Graceful Charity to draw three cards." Seeker said. "Now I must discard two. Next, I play Magical Mallet. I add two cards to the deck, shuffle it, and draw two new cards. Now, I sacrifice Stone Statue of the Aztecs to summon Guardian Sphinx (DEF: 2400)!" Then, a large sphinx in a golden mask and headdress appeared on the field. "Now, I'll end my turn by placing a card face down, and using my Sphinx's ability to flip him face down."

"I play Foolish Burial to discard a monster to the graveyard from my deck, and I'll use The Shallow Grave to bring that monster back to the field in defense mode." CJ said, summoning a defense monster. "And, The Shallow Grave lets you summon a monster from your graveyard in defense mode too. Go."

"I flip up Guardian Sphinx to return your monsters to your hand." Seeker said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down and summon a defense monster." CJ said. "Go."

"I pass." Seeker said.

"I lay a card face down." CJ said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down as well." Seeker said. "Go."

"I activate Fruits of Kozaky's Studies to look at the top three cards on my deck..." CJ said.

"I reveal Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your trap!" Seeker said.

"I use Dust Tornado to destroy your Typhoon!" CJ said. "Now, as I was saying, I look at my top three cards, then rearrange them in any order. Finally, I lay a card face down and end my turn."

Seeker drew a card. _Good... another piece._ He thought. "I pass."

"I lay one card face down." CJ said. "Go."

"I flip Guardian Sphinx face down." Seeker said. "And I Flip Summon Stone Statue of the Aztecs (DEF: 2000). Go."

"I use Shield Crush to destroy your face down Sphinx!" CJ said, activating his spell card. "Go."

"I activate Graceful Charity to draw three cards..." Seeker said, drawing three cards. "Next, I discard two cards. Now, I sacrifice Stone Statue of the Aztecs to summon Hieracosphinx, which I'll then sacrifice to special summon Exxod, Master of the Guard (DEF: 4000)!!" Seeker smiled as his large golden monster emerged onto the field. CJ gasped.

"Exxod? That's it!!" He exclaimed. "You're waiting to summon Exodia the Forbidden One!!"

"Ha ha ha! You may have figured out my strategy but it's too late to stop me!!" Seeker said, laughing. CJ fearfully reached for his deck to draw a card.

_I can't lose... If I lose, Kylie's dragon is gone and so is mine..._CJ thought. _And I can't lose that dragon... It means too much to me..._

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	4. CJ VS The Rare Hunter, Part 2

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_Kylie! Thank God you're all right." He then noticed the Duel Disk and missing deck. "What happened? Where's your deck?" Kylie reached into her pocket and pulled out a mess of jumbled cards._

"_Right here, minus my Five-Headed Dragon." Kylie said._

_  
"What?!"_

"_Some creep ambushed me on my way here about an hour and a half ago." Kylie said. "He beat me in a duel and took my dragon. He said his name was Seeker and he called himself a Rare Hunter."_

"_What? A Rare Hunter?" Yugi asked._

_  
"I thought the disbanded when you beat Marik." Joey said._

_  
"Me too." Yugi said._

"_Maybe they did." CJ said. "Maybe this Seeker guy is working on his own. But, either way, he's going down and I'm getting Kylie's dragon back."_

"_And if there's any more Rare Hunters out there, we'll help you put an end to them once and for all." Yugi said._

_---_

"_It's time to put your dueling skills to the test. I hope none of you entered my tournament looking for friendly competition. Battle City's gonna be an all out war. Before my Battle City tournament begins, I thought I'd let you all know what you're in for, in case you wanna back out now. First, let's talk about the most important duel. The loser of the duel is forced to hand over their rarest card to the winner. If you don't want to risk your precious cards, then I suggest you forfeit now." Kaiba said._

_---_

"_Now, where is that Seeker guy?" He wondered. His eyes then caught a man with spiked white hair, a blue shirt, black pants, and a dark blue cape._

"_That's him!" Kylie exclaimed. "That's the scum who stole my dragon!"_

"Correction: Won your dragon." Seeker said. "And, you have nothing that's of any use to me. But, how about your friend? I would love to hunt the owner of Industrial Illusions and snare his Blue Eyes White Dragon."

"_It's a deal, Seeker!" CJ said. "Now, as my first Battle City opponent, when you lose, you'll hand over your Locator Card and Kylie's dragon. And, if you win, I'll hand over my locator card and Blue Eyes White Dragon."_

_---_

"_I activate Gracefull Charity to draw three cards..." Seeker said, drawing three cards. "Next, I discard two cards. Now, I sacrifice Stone Statue of the Aztecs to summon Hieracosphinx, which I'll then sacrifice to special summon Exxod, Master of the Guard (DEF: 4000)!!" Seeker smiled as his large golden monster emerged onto the field. CJ gasped._

_  
"Exxod? That's it!!" He exclaimed. "You're waiting to summon Exodia the Forbidden One!!"_

"_Ha ha ha! You may have figured out my strategy but it's too late to stop me!!" Seeker said, laughing. CJ fearfully reached for his deck to draw a card._

_I can't lose... If I lose, Kylie's dragon is gone and so is mine... CJ thought. And I can't lose that dragon... It means too much to me..._

**CHAPTER FOUR: CJ VS The Rare Hunter, Part 2**

"You may have realized my plan to summon Exodia, but it's too late to defeat me!" Seeker said. "I already have three pieces in my hand, and once I get the last two pieces, it's over! I'll summon Exodia and obliterate you, claiming your Blue Eyes White Dragon!"

"Not if I can help it!" CJ said, drawing a card. "I activate Solemn Wishes. Now whenever I draw a card, I gain 500 life points. And that's all for me."

"I activate Swords of Revealing Light and place a monster in defense monster." Seeker said. "Your move."

_Great... I can't attack for three turns, which means he'll keep building up his defensive wall of monsters._ CJ thought. He drew a card and a golden aura surrounded him (LP: 5500). "I pass."

"I flip summon Moai Interceptor Cannons (DEF: 2000)!" Seeker said. "And since I flip summoned an Earth-attribute monster, you lose 1000 life points." CJ gasped as Exxod shot a golden beam at him (LP: 5500 - 1000). "Now, I use my cannons' ability to flip them face down again. Go."

"First, I draw a card and gain 500 life points thanks to Solemn Wishes (LP: 5000)." CJ said. "Next, I sacrifice my face down Lord of Dragons to summon Curse of Dragon (ATK: 2000)." Then, a golden dragon appeared on CJ's field. "Go."

Seeker drew a card. _Perfect... One more piece and I've won the duel! _"I pass, since I now have four pieces... One more and it's over." Seeker said.

_Oh no... I have to win this turn or else I'm done._ CJ thought, reaching for his deck. He closed his eyes and drew a card (LP: 5500). _That helps... This is a race against time... I'm sure he's already got his fourth piece. I need to win this before he draws the final piece of I can kiss my dragon goodbye. _"I pass as well."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Seeker said. "Go."

_I'm getting close... It all comes down to the wire... One card separates either one of us from victory... And our spot in the tournament..._ CJ thought (LP: 6000). "Your move."

"I pass." Seeker said.

CJ reached for his deck. _Please... Heart of the Cards... Guide me... Don't let me lose Kylie's dragon._ CJ closed his eyes and grabbed his card. In his mind, Kylie appeared next to him and grabbed the card as well.

"_I'm here with you, CJ... I promise... You'll win."_ Kylie said.

_I hope you're right..._ CJ snapped the top card off of his deck (LP: 6500). _That'll help._ "I play Lightning Vortex and discard a card to destroy all your face up monsters. Your move, Seeker."

"I pass." Seeker said.

CJ drew a card (LP: 7000). _This isn't looking good._ "I pass."

"I activate Graceful Charity!" Seeker said. "First, I draw three cards...Then I discard two. Now, I play Magical Mallet and add one card to the deck from my hand, shuffle it, and draw a new card. Next, I activate Swords of Revealing Light! Your move."

_Great... Another three turns for him to get his final Exodia piece..._ CJ thought. _I need to win..._ He snapped a card of the top of his deck and frowned (LP: 7500). _No... That's not it..._ "I pass."

"I place a card face down." Seeker said.

_**Meanwhile, in KaibaCorp...**_

"This Rare Hunter is good." Mokuba said. "I wonder if this is the same Rare Hunter who cheated in his duel against Yugi."

"It seems like it might be, but he's stronger now." Kaiba said.

"And I've scanned his cards." A technician said. "We aren't picking up traces of any invisible inks."

"It looks like he's running clean this time." Kaiba said.

"Do you think he has Exodia?" Mokuba asked.

"If he does, CJ doesn't have much time to win." Kaiba said.

_**Back in the duel...**_

"This is looking bad..." Yugi said. "Seeker has four pieces of Exodia, and Swords of Revealing Light still has two turns left."

"Plus Seeker's running out of cards, and he has to be getting close to that final piece of Exodia."Joey said. "That doesn't give CJ much of chance."

"Don't talk like that!" Tea said. "We need to stick by CJ! He's our friend!" She looked over at Kylie, who was staring intently at the duel. "And we need to do it for Kylie.. CJ's fighting for her. We have to support him." She turned to the duel. "Come on, CJ! You can do this!!"

"We're all here for you, dude!" Joey said.

"Come on, CJ! You can win!" Yugi said. A boy about their age then ran over. He had brown eyes and brown hair that was spiked into a point in the front of his head. He wore a black t-shirt and jeans.

"Hey, guys." He said. "What's going on?"

"Hey, Tristan." Joey said. "Glad you made it. CJ's dueling that Rare Hunter who took my Red Eyes back in the first Battle City. He took Kylie's Five-Headed Dragon, and CJ's fighting to get it back. But the Rare Hunter has four pieces of Exodia in his hand, and he's getting closer to the final piece."

"Oh man.." Tristan said. He turned to the duel. "Come on, man! You can do this!!"

CJ stood there, frozen with fear.

_What... What can I do?_ He thought. _He has four pieces of Exodia, and he can't be far from the final piece. There's no way I can win this..._

"Hey, Kylie... CJ needs our help." Tea said. "Kylie?" Suddenly, Kylie snapped out of her fix on the duel.

"Huh? Wha-?"

"CJ needs us." Tea said. Kylie quickly focused and joined the group's cheers.

"CJ! Come on! You can do this! I belive in you!!" She exclaimed. He remained motionless. "CJ! I love you!!" Suddenly, CJ regained focus and reached for his deck.

_I will win this! For Kylie! I love her!!_ He thought, yanking a card off his deck (LP: 8000). "I lay one card face down. Go." _Thanks, Kylie. I promise I'll get your dragon back._

"I play Brain Control (LP: 5000 - 800) to gain control of your Curse of Dragon." Seeker said. "Curse of Dragon, attack your former master directly!!"

"I reveal my trap: Draining Sheild!" CJ said. "Not only is your attack negated, but I gain life points equal to your dragon's attack power." He smiled as Curse of Dragon's flame attacked surrounded him and fizzled out (LP: 10000).

"Go..." Seeker said.

"I activate Call of the Haunted and play Premature Burial (LP: 10500 - 800) to summon Blue Eyes White Dragon (ATK: 3000) and Lord of Dragons (ATK: 1200)." CJ said, summoning his monsters back from the graveyard. _Next turn, it's over._ "Go." Seeker's swords vanished as he drew a card.

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Seeker said. "Next, I activate Compulsory Evacuation Device to return Blue Eyes to your hand!" CJ took back his dragon. "Go."

CJ drew a card and smirked (LP: 10200). "I play Pot of Greed to draw two cards!" CJ smiled at the two cards he drew (LP: 11200). "Next, I play Giant Trunade to return all spells and traps on the field to our hands. Now, I lay three cards face down and end my turn."

Seeker drew a card and CJ's Solemn Wishes trap revealed itself.

"I set another defense." Seeker said. "Go."

CJ drew a card and smiled (LP: 11700). "I reveal my face down card: Pyramid of Light!!" Then, a white pyramid surrounded the field, but it was transparent so everyone could see the duel. "Next, I pay 1000 life points (LP: 11700 - 1000) to special summon Andro Sphinx (ATK: 3000) and Sphinx Teleia (ATK: 2500)!" CJ smiled as two creatures appeared on the field. The first was a creature with a lion's head, golden mane and the body of beast warrior. The second was a creature with a human's head, red hair, the body of a lion and wings. "Go."

"I sacrifice a defense to summon another Criosphinx, which I'll sacrfice to special summon another Exxod (DEF: 4000)." Seeker said.

"Not another one..." CJ said.

"Oh no... CJ's done." Joey said.

"No! He can't lose!" Kylie said. "He... He won't lose!"

_She's right! I refuse to lose! I'm doing this for her, and I won't fail someone I love!!_ CJ thought, as he drew a card (LP: 11200). "I pass."

"I lay a card face down." Seeker said. "Go."

_He can't have too many cards left..._ CJ thought. _I have to draw the winning card soon..._ He drew a card (LP: 11700) and frowned. "I summon a defense monster. Go."

"I place a card face down." Seeker said. "Now make your final move. I only have three cards left, and since I have three complete sets of Exodia in my deck, those are all copies of my last piece... the Right Leg of the Forbidden One."

_Oh no... That means I have to win this turn or it's all over..._ CJ thought. _I need to draw my winning card here... Heart of the Cards... Don't fail me now... Please... Guide my deck..._

"CJ! You can win! I know you can!!" Kylie exclaimed.

"Draw your last pathetic card so I can finish you off!" Seeker said.

"My deck has no pathetic cards, Seeker... Like yours, my deck..." He drew his last card and held it up. "...contains the unstoppable EXODIA!!!" Seeker gasped as the beast he struggled so hard to summon emerged on CJ's field.

"Impossible!!!" Seeker exclaimed. "I was sure I'd..."

"Exodia, OBLITERATE!!" CJ exclaimed. Exodia drew back it's hand and launched an energy beam that knocked Seeker over, scattering his cards. CJ walked over, grabbed Kylie's Five-Headed Dragon and Seeker's Locator Card. "I'll be taking my prize, knocking you out of the tournament." He then walked over to Kylie and held out Five-Headed Dragon.

"Here you go, babe." He said. "I believe this is yours." Kylie grabbed her card and kissed CJ.

"Thanks, CJ." She said. "I love you."

"I love you too." CJ said. "Always have."

"Listen, guys... I'm gonna head off on my own." Yugi said. "I'll catch you guys later."

"I'll go with you." Tea said.

"And I'm gonna head out on my own too." Joey said.

"Serenity and I will go with him too." Tristan said

"Okay." CJ said. "Kylie and I will catch up with you guys later. Good luck, you two."

"You too, CJ." Yugi said.

"Yeah, let's make sure we all meet in the finals." Joey said.

"Deal." CJ said.

_______________________________________________________________________


	5. The Arcane One

**CHAPTER FIVE: The Arcane One**

Kylie and CJ wandered through the city.

"I can't wait to duel my first Battle City opponent." Kylie said.

"Remember, Ky, these are tough duelists." CJ said. "They're champions."

"So, I beat Yugi, remember?" Kylie replied.

"I know." CJ said. "But that doesn't mean you can just jump in and duel everyone you see."

"I'm not stupid, dude." Kylie said. It was then that they heard someone nearby.

"Great Moth! Attack!!" The two pushed their way through a crowd and saw Weevil Underwood dueling a purple haired, red eyed boy about the age of 13 in a black robe.

"I reveal Sakuretsu Armor! Now your moth is destroyed!" The boy said. "Now, Machine King (ATK: 5400), attack Weevil directly!!" Weevil fell to the ground as the boy's Machine King launched its fists at him (LP: 0). "You lose, Weasel."

"It's 'Weevil'."

"Not anymore." The boy said. He then noticed CJ and Kylie. _The owner of Industrial Illusions and the Queen of Games! Perfect prey!_ "Hey, you two!"

"Us?" CJ asked.

"Yeah." The boy said. "I challenge you to a duel!"

"Both of us?" Kylie asked.

"No, just the boy."

"Don't do it!" Weevil said. "He's Harue Namekai. He's a psychic machine duelist. He'll read your mind using ESP and then counter your strategies with his machines."

"Psychic machine duelist? Sounds like Bandit Keith on drugs." CJ joked.

"Excuse me?" Harue asked. "You'll regret that comment! Let's duel!"

"Fine." CJ said. "Two Locator Cards."

"I don't think so." Harue said. "I only wager one Locator Card on every duel. I like to add a little twist to my duels. Instead of just wagering Locator Cards, I place other things on the line."

"Don't do it!" Weevil said. "He forced me to wager my entire dueling deck and Duel Disk, and then he beat me!"

"That's twisted!" CJ said. "Fine! When I win, you'll give me a Locator Card and return Weevil's stuff."

"Deal. But, if I win, your girlfriend comes back to my place for a good time." Harue said.

"Hell no!" CJ said. "I'm not gonna wager Kylie's virginity on a duel against some kid!"

"You leave me no choice." Harue said, as a group of thugs appeared out of the crowds, all holding knives. They surrounded CJ and Kylie. "Care to reconsider?"

"Don't do it, CJ!" Kylie said. "Let me beat him!"

"No. If he really does have ESP..." _Which I seriously doubt. _"...You could be in trouble." CJ said.

"What's it gonna be?" Harue chuckled. "Are we gonna duel or am I getting laid tonight?"

_I'm gonna have to kick this kid's ass and teach him some manners. _CJ thought. "Very well...Let's duel!!" _His machines are nothing compared to what I have in my deck. _CJ drew a card. _And there it is._"I activate Spell Absorption and summon Kaiser Sea Horse (ATK: 1700)." It was then that a knight in purple and blue armor appeared on CJ's field. "Let's see your machines beat that."

"Machines? Ha!" Harue said. "That deck was weak. I chose to use a different deck to crush you." It was then that a gray female alien like monster in blue armor appeared in front of Harue. A monster card then appeared above Harue and began rotating it.

"That card! It can't be-!"

"I summon Arcana Force III- The Empress (ATK: 1300)!" Harue said.

"You thief!" CJ exclaimed. "That's a prototype card from my company! How dare you steal it!"

"It won't matter when this duel's done, because it'll be MY company." Harue smiled. "And I'm sure you know how this card works." CJ nodded, snapped his fingers and the monster card stopped rotating, landing right side up.

"Yeah, thanks to your monster's ability, whenever I summon a monster, you can summon a new Arcana Force monster." CJ said, drawing a card. "But, it won't matter when I summon my next monster... I sacrifice my Kaiser Sea Horse for this..." A large white dragon then appeared on CJ's field. Suddenly, half of the dragon became black. "Light and Darkness Dragon (ATK: 2800)!!"

"Thanks, because I can special summon another Arcana Force card." Harue said, as a large floating silver monster with two large claws appeared on the field. "So meet Arcana Force XXI-"

"The World (ATK: 3100)..." CJ said.

"That's right." Harue said, as the monster card started rotating. CJ snapped his fingers and Harue's card stopped, landing right side up again.

"Light and Darkness Dragon!!" CJ shouted. "Attack The Empress!!" Harue stood there unfazed as his Arcana monster was destroyed (LP: 4000 - 1500). "Go."

"Arcana Force XXI, attack Light and Darkness Dragon!!" CJ watched as The World charged up and energy beam and launched it at his dragon, destroying it (LP: 4000 - 300).

"I activate my dragon's special ability and destroy all the cards on my field to summon Kaiser Sea Horse (DEF: 1650)." CJ said, drawing a card. "Next, I summon another Kaiser Sea Horse (DEF: 1650). Go."

"Arcana Force XXI, destroy Kaiser Sea Horse!!" Harue said. CJ stood there as one of his Kaiser's was destroyed. "Go."

"I lay one card face down and set a monster in defense mode. Go." CJ said.

"I summon Arcana Force IV- The Emperor (ATK: 1400)." Harue said, summoning a metallic gray monster with eight arms, two wings, and glowing red orbs all over it. The monster card above Harue then began to rotate.

"Stop!" CJ commanded, causing the card to stop upside down. "Good. Now, all your Arcana Force cards lose 500 points (ATK: 900) (ATK: 2600)."

"Not quite! I reveal Reversal of Fate!" Harue said, as the Emperor became right side up and his monsters were strengthened (ATK: 1900) (ATK: 3600). "Now, my monsters, take out his defenses!" CJ smiled as his face down card was revealed.

"I reveal Sakuretsu Armor! Say goodbye to The World!" CJ said, as the World was destroyed. The Emperor's attack then continued to strike CJ's defense monster. "And you destroyed Morphing Jar, meaning we each discard our hands and draw five new cards."

"I activate Gift of Greed, allowing you to draw two new cards." Harue said. CJ drew two cards and smirked. "Go."

"I summon Kaiser Sea Horse to summon another ultimate creature... Andro Sphinx (ATK: 3000)!!" CJ exclaimed, as his sphinx took the field. It had beast's body, a lion's head, and hard blue armor. "Your move."

"I play Cup of Ace!" Harue said. A spell card then appeared above him and began to rotate.

"Stop!" CJ said, as the card stopped right side up.

"Good, now I draw two cards." Harue said. "Now, I summon another Arcana Force IV (DEF: 1400)!" Another monster card appeared above Harue's field and began to spin.

"Stop!" CJ shouted, as the card stopped upside down and both Emperors returned to their original attack power (ATK: 1400 [x2]).

"I end my turn by switching my other Emperor to defense mode (DEF: 1400)." Harue said.

"Andro Sphinx, attack Arcana Force IV!" CJ commanded. Harue watched as one of his defense's was eaten alive by CJ's Sphinx and the other was weakened (ATK: 900).

"Good thing my monster was in defense mode." Harue said, as Andro Sphinx bit him in the shoulder. "Aah!! What was that?! (LP: 2500 - 1600)."

"Andro Sphinx deals damage even if your monster is in defense mode." CJ said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down." Harue said.

"I pass." CJ said.

"I lay another card face down." Harue said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down and end my turn." CJ said.

"I pass." Harue said.

_Wow... CJ's got this guy on the ropes._ Kylie thought. _One attack from Andro Sphinx and it's over._

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Red Eyes, destroy Serpent Night Dragon!!" Joey was face to face with Rex Raptor. Joey (LP: 2800) had a large metallic dragon on the field, and Rex (LP: 1100) had a purple serpent dragon, which was quickly destroyed.

"You'll pay for that!" Rex exclaimed.

_**Back with CJ...**_

"I summon Lord of Dragons (ATK: 1200) and end my turn." CJ said, summoning his dragon-armor wearing knight.

"I play Cup of Ace." Harue said. CJ smiled as the spinning spell card landed upside down.

"Good, now I draw two cards instead of you." CJ said, picking up two cards.

"Go..." Harue said.

"I play Soul Exchange to sacrifice my monster and yours to summon Red Eyes Black Dragon (ATK: 2400)!" CJ said, summoning a large black dragon. "Next, I lay a card face down and end my turn."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Harue said. "Go."

"I activate Pyramid of Light!!" CJ exclaimed, as the white pyramid surrounded the duel. Unlike the duel with Seeker, however, no one could see CJ and Harue, and they couldn't see outside the pyramid. "Now, I pay 500 life points (LP: 3700 - 500) to special summon Sphinx Teleia (ATK: 2500)!" Then, CJ's other sphinx joined the duel. She had a human's head, red hair, the body of a lion and wings. "Next, I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy the Pyramid of Light!!" The Pyramid of Light and CJ's two sphinxes vanished.

"Ha! You just destroyed your own monsters!" Harue laughed. "You fool! You don't deserve to run Industrial Illusions!"

"Wrong!!" CJ shouted (LP: 3200 - 500). "Since Andro Sphinx and Sphinx Teleia were both destroyed at the same time, they unleash a new beast!!" Suddenly, a new sphinx appeared on the field. It had Teleia's body, Andro Sphinx's torso, and both heads combined. "And you know what they say... Two Heads are better than one!! Arise, Theinen the Great Sphinx (ATK: 3500)!" Suddenly, CJ's life points dropped (LP: 2700 - 500) and Theinen's attack increased (ATK: 6500). "Red Eyes, attack Harue's defense! Theinen, bring an end to this duel!!" CJ's two monsters attacked, knocking Harue down (LP: 0) and knocking him unconscious. CJ walked over and grabbed Harue's deck.

"Wow... He beat Harue." A spectator said.

"I'll be taking those cards back, thief." CJ said, grabbing the Arcana Force cards.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Gilford the Lightning! End this duel!" Joey shouted, as a warrior in white armor and a red cape attacked Rex, ending the duel (LP: 0).

_**Back with CJ...**_

"All right... Three locator cards. Only five to go." CJ smiled.

"Lucky. I still need seven more." Kylie said.

"Don't worry, you'll find an opponent soon." CJ said.

"I hope so." Kylie said.

"Trust me." CJ said. "If you want to get to the finals, you'll have to duel someone. And, odds are, someone will have to duel you to get to the finals."

"True." Kylie said.

"Come on, let's go find ourselves another challenge." CJ said, smiling.

* * *


	6. Rematch of the Millennium

**CHAPTER SIX: Rematch of the Millennium, Part 1**

Yugi wandered through Battle City, eager for his first duel.

"So, who are you gonna duel?" Tea asked him.

"Anyone." Yugi said. "As long as I can get to the finals and get my title back from Kylie."

"Are you sure you can?" Tea asked.

"With the Egyptian gods at my disposal, yes." Yugi said confidently.

"Yugi-boy! No big surprise that you're here." Yugi and Tea turned around and saw a man about the age of 29 with long white hair, garbed in a red suit.

"Pegasus!" Yugi said surprised. "What brings you here?"

"A chance to trounce Kaiba-boy." The man, Maximillion Pegasus, said. "Now, what do you say to giving me the honor of beind my first opponent in Battle City?"

"You're on, Pegasus!" Yugi said. "Get ready for the rematch of the Millennium!"

"And we'll have a fair match without our Millennium Items." Pegasus said.

"Oh yeah!!" Yugi smirked. "And, I'll start! I summon Queen's Knight (ATK: 1500)!" Then, a blond-haired female knight in red armor appeared on Yugi's field. "Your move."

"I place one card face down and summon a monster in defense mode." Pegasus said. "Your move, Yugi-boy."

"I summon King's Knight (ATK: 1600)." Yugi said, summoning a blond-haired, bearded male knight in orange armor. Then, a tall blond knight in blue armor appeared next to his other two knights. "And now, my two knights let me special summon Jack's Knight (ATK: 1900). King's Knight, attack his defense!" Pegasus watched as a clown in a green costume and purple hat was destroyed. "Your move."

"I place another monster in defense mode." Pegasus said. "Go." Yugi drew a card and Pegasus's face down revealed itself. "I activate Bubble Crash! Since youn have more than six cards between your field and hand, you must discard until you only have five."

"Fine, I'll discard Red Gadget, Yellow Gadget and Magician of Black Chaos." Yugi said, discarding three cards. "Next, I lay a card face down and summon Green Gadget (ATK: 1400)." Then, a green machine monster composed mostly of gears appeared on Yugi's field. "Now, since my hand is empty, I can draw three new cards. Go."

"I lay another monster in defense mode." Pegasus said. "Go."

"I pass." Yugi said.

"I pay 1000 life points (LP: 4000 - 1000) to activate Toon World!" Pegasus said, as a small cartoonish book appeared on his field. "Next, I sacrifice my two monsters to summon Blue Eyes Toon Dragon (ATK: 3000)!" Then, a cartoony version of the legendary white dragon appeared on the field. "Your move."

"I sacrifice King's Knight, Queen's Knight and Jack's Knight in order to summon..." Yugi smiled as he held up a card and his three knights became beams of energy that transferred themselves to his card. Clouds then filled the area and lightning began to strike all around. A long, red dragon with large wings, two mouths, and a black underside emerged from the clouds. "...Slifer the Sky Dragon (ATK: X000)!! And, Slifer gains 1000 attack and defense points for each card in my hand (ATK: 4000)!"

"Impressive, Yugi-boy..." Pegasus said. "You summoned an Egyptian god. Maybe you still are the King of Games."

"Huh?" Yugi asked.

"I saw your match with Miss Howard. She's quite a skilled duelist, but only a true master can command the gods." Pegasus said. "After all, look what happened with me. I was nearly wiped out for just creating them. But then again, my desperation to have Cecilia by my side again blinded me to the truth..."

"If I may, I'm going to continue my move." Yugi said. "Slifer, attack Blue Eyes Toon Dragon!!" Pegasus smiled as his dragon was destroyed (LP: 3000 - 1000). "Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Pegasus said. "Go."

"I activate Swords of Revealing Light!!" Yugi said, as glowing swords pierced Pegasus's field. "Slifer, attack Pegasus's defense! Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode and lay a card face down." Pegasus said. Yugi drew a card and Slifer's power increased (ATK: 5000).

"Slifer, attack Pegasus's defense monster!!" Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon a defense monster." Pegasus said. "Go."

"I activate Black Luster Ritual and sacrifice Green Gadget and a monster from my hand to summon Black Luster Soldier (ATK: 3000)!" Yugi said, summoning a knight with flowing red hair garbed in blue and gold armor. It was then that Slifer's attack power decreased (ATK: 3000). "Slifer, destroy Pegasus's defense! Your move."

_**Meanwhile...**_

Kaiba walked through Battle City. He stopped and pressed a button on his jacket, activating his communicator.

"Mokuba.. Status report." He said.

"No one's played any of the Wicked god cards, Big Brother." Mokuba said. "But Yugi Moto summoned one of his Egyptian god cards in a duel against Pegasus. And, CJ defeated Seeker using Exodia, and he also beat a mysterious duelist named Harue using the Pyramid of Light and its Sphinxs."

"He's gonna be one to watch out for." Kaiba said. "What about his protege, Kylie?"

"She has yet to duel, bro." Mokuba said.

"And what about that dork, Wheeler?" Kaiba asked.

"He just scored a Locator Card by beating Rex Raptor." Mokuba said.

"Okay." Kaiba said. It was then that a Neo Ghoul blocked Kaiba's path.

"Seto Kaiba... I challenge you to a duel!" The Ghoul said. Kaiba looked at the Ghoul and smiled.

"Good... You Rare Hunters took my bait."

"We're no longer the Rare Hunters... We are now the Neo Ghouls." The Ghoul said.

"Whatever." Kaiba said. "Let's duel."

_**Back in the duel...**_

"I summon Toon Mermaid (DEF: 1500)." Pegasus said, summoning a green-haired, cartoony mermaid inside an oyster shell with eyes. "Go."

"Slifer, show Toon Mermaid your special ability!" Slifer's second mouth opened and launched a blue blast of energy at Pegasus's mermaid (DEF: 0). "Now, Slifer, destroy Toon Mermaid!!" Pegasus watched as his mermaid was destroyed, leaving him open to attacks. "Your move."

_Why hasn't he finished me off yet?_ Pegasus wondered. _Is he waiting for something?_ "I play Polymerization to fuse two cards in my hand... Relinquished and Thousand-Eyes Idol to summon Thousand Eyes Restrict (ATK: 0)!!" Pegasus said, as a large brown monster with a thousand eyes all over its body appeared on the field. "Now, Thousand-Eyes Restrict, use your ability to take control Black Luster Soldier!!" Pegaus smiled as his monster absorbed Yugi's solider and its points increased (ATK: 3000). "Go."

_I could attack Thousand-Eyes Restrict right now and wipe out Pegasus, but it's too risky._ Yugi thought. "I summon a defense monster and end my turn."

"I unequip Black Luster Soldier from my Thousand-Eyes Restrict and equip it with Slifer (ATK: 2000). Next, I play Final Ritual of the Ancients!! I sacrifice your Slifer to summon my ultimate creature..."

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Kaiser Sea Horse, attack DD Warrior Lady!!" Kaiba commanded. On his field was a warrior in purple and blue armor and the Neo Ghoul had a female warrior in silver armor on the field. Kaiba's monster attacked the Neo Ghoul's and both monsters then vanished. "What the-?"

"When DD Warrior Lady is destroyed, she takes her opponent with her, and both monsters are removed from play." The Neo Ghoul said (LP: 2650 - 200).

"Go." Kaiba said.

"I play Different Dimension Reincarnation to bring back the card you forced me to discard at the beginning of our duel... Caius the Shadow Monarch (ATK: 2400)!" The Neo Ghoul said, summoning a monster in black armor and a torn gray cape. "Attack!"

"I reveal my face down Enemy Controller, which switches your monster to defense mode (DEF: 1000)!" Kaiba said. "My move. And I activate Polymerization to fuse the three Blue Eyes White Dragons into Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon (ATK: 4500)!!" A large, three-headed white dragon then appeared on Kaiba's field. "Ultimate Dragon, destroy Caius!!" The Neo Ghoul gasped as his monster was destroyed.

"Oh no!! Not that!!" He exclaimed.

_**Meanwhile, in a warehouse on the other side of Battle City...**_

"Master Keith, Seto Kaiba is dueling one of our own as we speak." A Neo Ghoul said to Bandit Keith. "He just summoned his Ultimate Dragon and it may be the end for our soldier, sir."

"Who is it?" Keith asked.

"It's Callum, sir." The Ghoul said.

"No big deal." Keith said. "I've been looking for a reason to eject him from our ranks anyway."

_**And in northern Battle City...**_

CJ and Kylie wandered along a small river, looking around for Kylie's next opponent. Suddenly, a nearby duel caught their attention. They walked over and saw that it was Mai Valentine dueling against a Neo Ghoul.

"Is that a Rare Hunter?" CJ wondered. Having overheard him, Mai turned around.

"Not anymore." She said. "They call themselves Neo Ghouls now. They changed their name after breaking away from Marik, but I guess they never disbanded."

"Hey, girl! Turn around and duel me!!" The Ghoul shouted.

"You're in a hurry to be beaten by my Harpies." Mai smirked.

_**Back in the duel...**_

"I summon Reshef the Dark Being (ATK: 2500)!" Pegasus exclaimed, as a large golden monster emerged onto the field. Its left arm was connected to its body by a glowing red orb, its right arm was connected by a blue orb and its lower body was connected to its upper body by a golden orb.

"What on Earth is that thing?" Yugi wondered.

"Whoa, that thing is kinda scary!" Tea exclaimed.

"Now, I discard a spell card to control your Black Luster Soldier!! Next, I summon Toon Goblin Attack Force (ATK: 2300)." Then, a cartoony green goblin in a brown tunic appeared on the field. "Now, Yugi... Prepare to lose at the hands of the Great Dark Being!!"

_Oh man... With only one defense on my field, I'm done for!_ Yugi thought.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon, attack the Neo Ghoul directly!" Kaiba commanded. "Neutron Blast!!" Callum stumbled back as Kaiba's dragon attacked him (LP: 0).

"You'll pay for that, Kaiba!" The Ghoul exclaimed, running off. Kaiba pressed a button on his Duel Disk and it launched a rope and claw that latched onto the Ghoul's Duel Disk.

"And you'll pay if you don't hand over your two Locator Cards." Kaiba said. The Ghoul threw down his two Locator Cards. Kaiba scooped them up and set the Neo Ghoul free. The Ghoul then quickly ran off.

_**In North Battle City...**_

"Harpie Lady Sisters, attack the Neo Ghoul's Exiled Force!! Triangle Ecstasy Spark!!" Mai exclaimed, as her three winged girls attack a group of slightly armored warriors on the Neo Ghoul's field, obliterating them and denting the Ghoul's life points (LP: 3800 - 1400).

_**Back with Yugi...**_

"Reshef! Destroy Yugi's monster!" Yugi watched as Pegasus's ultimate creature destroyed his defense. "Now, Black Luster Soldier! Attack Yugi directly!" Yugi stumbled back as his monster struck him directly (LP: 4000 - 3000). "Toon Goblin Attack Force, end this!!" Yugi watched as Toon Goblin Attack Force charged at him, ready to end the duel...

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	7. Rematch of the Millennium, Part 2

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_So, who are you gonna duel?" Tea asked him._

_  
"Anyone." Yugi said. "As long as I can get to the finals and get my title back from Kylie."_

"Are you sure you can?" Tea asked.

_  
"With the Egyptian gods at my disposal, yes." Yugi said confidently._

"_Yugi-boy! No big surprise that you're here." Yugi and Tea turned around and saw a young man about the age of 27 with long white hair, garbed in a red suit._

"_Pegasus!" Yugi said surprised. "What brings you here?"_

"A chance to trounce Kaiba-boy." The man, Maximillion Pegasus, said. "Now, what do you say to giving me the honor of beind my first opponent in Battle City?"

_  
"You're on, Pegasus!" Yugi said. "Get ready for the rematch of the Millennium!"_

_---_

"_I pay 1000 life points (LP: 4000 - 1000) to activate Toon World!" Pegasus said, as a small cartoonish book appeared on his field. "Next, I sacrifice my two monsters to summon Blue Eyes Toon Dragon (ATK: 3000)!" Then, a cartoony version of the legendary white dragon appeared on the field. "Your move."_

_  
"I sacrifice King's Knight, Queen's Knight and Jack's Knight in order to summon..." Yugi smiled as he held up a card and his three knights became beams of energy that transferred themselves to his card. Clouds then filled the area and lightning began to strike all around. A long, red dragon with larged wings, two mouths, and a black underside emerged from the clouds. "...Slifer the Sky Dragon (ATK: X000)!! And, Slifer gains 1000 attack and defense points for each card in my hand (ATK: 4000)!"_

_---_

"_Mokuba.. Status report." He said._

_  
"No one's played any of the Wicked god cards, Big Brother." Mokuba said. "But Yugi Moto summoned one of his Egyptian god cards in a duel against Pegasus. And, CJ defeated Seeker using Exodia, and he also beat a mysterious duelist named Harue using the Pyramid of Light and its Sphinxs."_

_  
"He's gonna be one to watch out for." Kaiba said. "What about his protege, Kylie?"_

_  
"She has yet to duel, bro." Mokuba said._

"_And what about that dork, Wheeler?" Kaiba asked._

"_He just scored a Locator Card by beating Rex Raptor." Mokuba said._

_---_

"_I play Polymerization to fuse two cards in my hand... Relinquished and Thousand-Eyes Idol to summon Thousand Eyes Restrict (ATK: 0)!!" Pegasus said, as a large brown monster with a thousand eyes all over its body appeared on the field. "Now, Thousand-Eyes Restrict, use your ability to take control Black Luster Soldier!!" Pegaus smiled as his monster absorbed Yugi's solider and its points increased (ATK: 3000). "Go."_

_I could attack Thousand-Eyes Restrict right now and wipe out Pegasus, but it's too risky. Yugi thought. "I summon a defense monster and end my turn."_

"_I unequip Black Luster Soldier from my Thousand-Eyes Restrict and equip it with Slifer (ATK: 2000). Next, I play Final Ritual of the Ancients!! I sacrifice your Slifer to summon my ultimate creature..."_

_---_

"_I summon Reshef the Dark Being (ATK: 2500)!" Pegasus exclaimed, as a large golden monster emerged onto the field. Its left arm was connected to its body by a glowing red orb, its right arm was connected by a blue orb and its lower body was connected to its upper body by a golden orb._

"_What on Earth is that thing?" Yugi wondered._

"_Whoa, that thing is kinda scary!" Tea exclaimed._

"_Now, I discard a spell card to control your Black Luster Soldier!! Next, I summon Toon Goblin Attack Force (ATK: 2300)." Then, a cartoony green goblin in a brown tunic appeared on the field. "Now, Yugi... Prepare to lose at the hands of the Great Dark Being!!"_

_Oh man... With only one defense on my field, I'm done for! Yugi thought._

**CHAPTER SEVEN: Rematch of the Millennium, Part 2**

"Reshef! Destroy Yugi's monster!" Yugi watched as Pegasus's ultimate creature destroyed his defense. "Now, Black Luster Soldier! Attack Yugi directly!" Yugi stumbled back as his monster struck him directly (LP: 4000 - 3000). "Toon Goblin Attack Force, end this!!" Yugi watched as Toon Goblin Attack Force charged at him, ready to end the duel.

"I reveal my trap card! Spellbinding Circle!" Yugi said. "Now, your Toon Goblins can't attack, and their attack is decreased by 700 (ATK: 2300 - 700)."

"I lay one card face down. Your move." Pegasus said, as Black Luster Soldier returned to Yugi's field. "And, since I called an attack with my Goblins, they switch to defense mode (DEF: 0)."

"I place two cards face down and equip Black Luster Soldier with Mage Power, increasing his attack power by 500 for each spell and trap on my field (ATK: 5000)." Yugi said. "Black Luster Soldier, attack Thousand Eyes Restrict!!" Pegasus watched as Yugi's soldier rushed toward him.

"I reveal Negate Attack!!" Pegasus exclaimed. "Now, your attack is negated and your battle phase if over!"

"I end my turn." Yugi said.

"I summon a monster in defense mode and equip Thousand-Eyes Restrict with Black Luster Soldier (ATK: 3000)." Pegasus said. _I could finish Yugi off here, but as far as I'm concerned, he's still King of Games. Plus, he's seen my deck and knows my strategies. His face downs could easily counter anything I do._ "I end my turn."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "Go."

"I sacrifice my defense monster and Toon Goblin Attack Force to summon Manga Ryu-Ran (DEF: 2600)." Pegasus said, summoning a red dragon inside a dark blue eggshell with light blue spots. "Thousand Eyes Restrict, destroy his defense!!" Yugi smiled as a white glob appeared on his field and Pegasus's life points were hit (LP: 2000 - 1000).

"You attack my Marshmallon (DEF: 500)!" Yugi said. "He can't be destroyed in battle, and when he's attacked while face down, you take 1000 points of damage!"

"I end my turn." Pegasus said.

"I activate Marshmallon Glasses!" Yugi said. "Now, you can only attack Marshmallon!"

_I knew he still had it..._ Pegasus thought.

"I end my turn." Yugi said.

_It's too risky to try to attack with my Toons, since I need to pay life points to attack, and I don't have the life points to spare._ Pegasus thought. "Go."

"I pass." Yugi said, smirking.

"I lay a card face down and end my turn." Pegasus said.

"I play Monster Reborn!" Yugi said.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Harpie Lady Sisters, attack the Neo Ghoul directly!!" Mai smiled as her Harpies blasted the Neo Ghoul, decimating his life points (LP: 0).

"Oh yeah!!" Kylie cheered.

"Way to go, Mai!" CJ said.

Mai walked over to the Neo Ghoul and grabbed his two Locator Cards.

"Thanks for those." She said. She then grabbed the rarest card out of his deck. "And thanks for that."

"Nice duel, Mai." CJ said. "I hope we see each other in the finals."

"Me too." She said. "Good luck." She then walked away.

_**Back with Yugi...**_

"I summon Slifer the Sky Dragon (ATK: 4000)!!" Yugi exclaimed, as his red dragon returned to the field. "Slifer, attack Reshef the Dark Being and bring an end to this duel!!" Pegasus watched as Slifer destroyed his monster, obliterating his life points in the process.

"Impressive duel, Yugi-boy." Pegasus said. "Here. My Locator Card, as well as Reshef and Final Ritual of the Ancients."

"Pegasus, you only need to give me your _one_ rarest card." Yugi said.

"One is useless without the other. Take them." Pegasus said.

"Thank you." Yugi said, taking the cards and slipping them into his deck. A blond-haired, brown-eyed boy about the age of 11 then stepped out from behind a nearby bush.

"Wow!! You're Yugi Moto, the King of Games!" The kid exclaimed.

"_Former_ King of Games." Yugi corrected.

"You'll always be the King of Games to me." The kid said. "My name's Aaron."

"Nice to meet you, Aaron." Yugi said.

"Um... I was wondering... Would you duel me?" Aaron asked. "I've always dreamed of facing the great Yugi Moto, and it'd be an honor to get a shot at an Egyptian god card."

"Sure." Yugi said. Aaron activated his Duel Disk and Yugi shuffled his deck. They each drew five cards. "I'll start. I summon Red Gadget (ATK: 1300)." A red monster composed mostly of gears appeared on Yugi's field. "Now, I use his ability to add Yellow Gadget to my hand. Go."

"I lay two cards face down." Aaron said. "Go."

"I summon Yellow Gadget (ATK: 1200)." Yugi said, summoning a yellow monster similar to Red Gadget. "Next, I use his ability to add Green Gadget to my hand. Go."

"I pass..." Aaron said.

"I summon Green Gadget (ATK: 1400)." Yugi said, summoning a green gear monster. "Go."

"I pass again." Aaron frowned.

"I sacrifice Red Gadget, Green Gadget and Yellow Gadget to summon one of my best monsters..." Yugi said, holding up a card. He laid it on a monster card zone on his Duel Disk, closed his eyes and began to chant.

"Is he summoning-?" Pegasus wondered.

"Almighty protector of the sun and sky...

I beg of thee, please hear my cry...

Transform yourself from orb of light...

And bring me victory in this fight...

I beseech thee... grace our humble game...

But first I shall... Call out thy name!!

Winged Dragon of Ra (ATK: 3900)!!!" Yugi shouted, as the sacred golden dragon of Ra appeared on his field. "Winged Dragon of Ra, attack Aaron's life points!! Blaze Cannon!!" Aaron fell onto back as Ra launched a fireball at him (LP: 4000 - 3900). "Your move."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Aaron said. "Go."

"Winged Dragon of Ra, attack that defense monster!!" Yugi commanded. Aaron frowned as his defense was destroyed. "Go."

"I set another monster in defense mode." Aaron said. "Go."

"I activate Gold Sarcophagus! I remove one card in my deck from play, and if you play the same card, it's automatically destroyed." Yugi said, taking a card out of his deck. "Now, Winged Dragon of Ra! Attack his defense!! Your move."

"I lay a card face down." Aaron said. "Go."

"Winged Dragon of Ra! Attack him directly and end this duel!!" Yugi said.

"I reveal my trap: Sakuretsu Armor!" Aaron exclaimed, revealing his trap. He gasped as Ra's attack went through it and struck him (LP: 0). "Oops... I forgot. Traps don't affect the god cards..." Aaron handed Yugi his Locator Cards and rarest card. Yugi pushed back the rarest card.

"It's okay. You can keep that." He said. "I can't take a card away from a fan."

"Wow, thanks." Aaron said. "Good luck in the tournament, Mr Yugi."

"Thanks." Yugi said. Aaron smiled. Yugi shook his hand and Aaron walked away.

"Your skills never cease to amaze me, Yugi-boy." Pegasus said.

"Thanks." Yugi said.

_**Meanwhile...**_

CJ and Kylie were sitting on a bench in Domino Park. Kylie was staring at the sky, while CJ was looking through his deck. CJ looked over at Kylie and asked:

"You okay?" Having broken her train of thought, Kylie looked at CJ.

"Y-yeah. I'm fine." She said. "I was just thinking about my parents."

"Be careful." CJ said. "You can't get distracted like that in a duel."

"I know." Kylie said.

"Especially in a tournament like this one." CJ said. "The duelists in this tournament are some of the best in the world." Little did he know, someone stood nearby, watching him. It was a bald young man in a black shirt and red overalls. He had multiple piercings all over his face and he wore purple lipstick. He was standing, frozen like a statue, eyes fixed on CJ and Kylie. It was then that someone spoke to him via walkie talkie earpiece.

"Get ready, Strings... Duel him, defeat him, and find that Wicked god card, or you're out of the Neo Ghouls!"


	8. The Wicked Eraser

_**(11/26/09) Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!! Enjoy the turkey and don't eat too much. And while you're at it, please enjoy this new chapter.**_

**CHAPTER EIGHT: The Wicked Eraser, Part 1**

CJ and Kylie sat on a bench in Domino Park.

"I wish I could find an opponent." Kylie sighed. "You're lucky. You already have three Locator Cards."

"Yeah, but did you notice the low-life scum I dueled to get them?" CJ responded. "The first one cornered you into a duel and took your best card. The second one somehow infiltrated my company and took a prototype deck."

"Point taken." Kylie said. The two then got up and began walking through Battle City.

_**Later...**_

CJ and Kylie walked along a small flood tunnel in the south of Battle City. Suddenly, a duel caught their attention.

"Attack!" A young man was dueling a Neo Ghoul. He was a bald young man in a black shirt and red overalls. He had multiple piercings all over his face and he wore purple lipstick. The Neo Ghoul collapsed to his knees as a large blue slime creature attacked him (LP: 0).

"Oh yeah!" Kylie exclaimed. "Someone else is dueling the Neo Ghouls!!" The young man turned around. The Neo Ghoul whispered:

"We lured him in... Get him, Strings." He then stood up and walked away. CJ jumped down and looked at Strings.

"Nice duel." He said.

"You... Me... Duel..." Strings said.

"Deal." CJ said. "Two Locator Cards." Strings simply activated his Duel Disk and drew five cards. CJ activated his as well and drew six cards. "I summon Kaiser Sea Horse (ATK: 1700) and lay two cards face down." CJ's blue-and-purple-armored warrior appeared on the field. "Go."

"Revival Jam (DEF: 500)." Strings said. "Go."

"I activate Rain of Mercy." CJ said, increasing both players' life points (LP: 5000 [x2]). "Next, I sacrifice Kaiser Sea Horse to summon Light and Darkness Dragon (ATK: 2800)!" Then, a white dragon appeared on CJ's field. Suddenly, half of the dragon became black. "But, since I know that Revival Jam can't be beaten in battle, I'll end my turn."

"Two facedowns." Strings said. "Go."

"I lay one card face down." CJ said. "Go."

"Pass." Strings said.

"Light and Darkness Dragon! Attack Revival Jam!!" Strings stood there, smiling, as CJ's dragon launched an energy blast at his Jam. CJ's dragon quickly flashed white, then Revival Jam burst into droplets of slime, which fell to the ground and evaporated. CJ's dragon then became weakened (ATK: 2300 / DEF: 1900).

"What just happened?" Kylie wondered.

"My dragon can negate spell, trap and monster effects at a cost of 500 attack and defense points." CJ said. "So, I negated Revival Jam's ability to revive itself when destroyed. Your move, dude."

"Activate... Nightmare's Steelcage and Judgment of the Desert..." Strings said. CJ's dragon glowed before both cards were destroyed (ATK: 1300 / DEF: 900).

"The down side to this effect is that it's automatic." CJ said.

"Summon... Disciple of the Forbidden Spell." Strings said, summoning a white-haired warrior in torn clothing. "Attack..."

"Reveal trap card!! Draining Shield!" CJ said. "Now, your Disciple's attack is negated, and I gain life points equal to its attack power (LP: 6700)."

"End." Strings said.

"I activate Pyramid of Light and pay 500 life points (LP: 6700 - 500) to summon Sphinx Teleia (ATK: 2500)!" CJ said, summoning a sphinx with a white lion's body, two golden wings, a human head, and red hair. "Go."

"Sacrifice... Disciple... Summon... Cyber-Tech Alligator (ATK: 2500)." Strings said, summoning a humanoid alligator in hard red armor. "Attack... Dragon..." CJ watched as his Light and Darkness Dragon was destroyed (LP: 6200 - 1200).

"I place a card face down and switch Teleia to defense mode (DEF: 3000)." CJ said. "Go."

"Activate... Infinite Cards." Strings said. "End."

"I lay a card face down and end my turn." CJ said.

"Set... defense..." Strings said. "End."

"I switch Teleia to attack mode (ATK: 2500) and attack your defense." CJ said. He smirked as a bull-like warrior (DEF: 500) was destroyed. "Now, Teleia's ability deals you damage equal to the difference between her attack points and your monster's defense points (LP: 5000 - 2000). "Go."

"Lay... Card face down." Strings said. "End."

"I activate Fruits of Kozaky's Studies, to look at the top three cards on my deck, and rearrange them in any order." CJ said. "Go."

"Pass..." Strings said.

"I pass." CJ said.

"Cyber-Tech Alligator... Attack..." Strings said. CJ watched as his Sphinx and Strings's Alligator were destroyed. "Summon... Homunculus the Alchemic Being (ATK: 1800). Attack..." CJ stumbled back as he was struck by a red-and-black skinned man (LP: 5000 - 1800). "End."

"I use the Shallow Grave to summon a monster in defense mode." CJ said. "Next, I'l fortify my ranks with another defense. "Of course, the Shallow Grave allows you to do the same." Strings placed a monster in defense mode and drew a card.

"Homunculus... Attack..." Strings said, as his monster attacked one of CJ's defenses, destroying it. "End."

"I pass." CJ said.

"Summon... King's Knight (ATK: 1600)." Strings said, summoning a blond male knight in orange armor. "Homunculus... attack..." CJ watched as his defense was destroyed. "End."

"I activate Shield Crush to destroy your defense!" CJ said. He smiled as Revival Jam appeared on the field and was destroyed. "Go."

"Summon... Rampaging Rhynos (ATK: 1500)." Strings said, summoning a humanoid rhino in blue armor. "End."

_He could've just wiped out my life points... What is he waiting for?_ CJ wondered. "I pass..."

Suddenly, Strings's eyes regained a normal look and he smirked.

"Prepare yourself!!" He exclaimed.

CJ gasped. "He... He spoke!"

"I sacrifice all three of my monsters... King's Knight, Homunculus the Alchemic Being and Rampaging Rhynos to summon my ultimate monster..." CJ watched as the sky darkened and lightning began to strike around the area. A mechanical silver dragon-like monster appeared from a crevasse in the ground, surrounded by blue flames. It had two large horns, a long snout, and a blue-green gem on its chest.

"That beast! It can't be...!"

"I summon The Wicked Eraser (ATK: ?)!!" Strings exclaimed.

"You thief!!" CJ shouted. "That card was under lock and key at the Smithsonian!!"

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Big Brother, someone just summoned the first Wicked god." Mokuba's voice said over Kaiba's walkie-talkie.

"Where? Who?!" Kaiba asked.

"That guy, Strings... The one who summoned Slifer against Yugi in the first Battle City." Mokuba said. "And, you'll never believe who his opponent is..."

"Yugi?" Kaiba asked.

"No. CJ!" Mokuba said. Kaiba smirked.

"The first Wicked god against the the owner of Industrial Illusions... Perfect. I knew inviting him to the tournament would lure out the cards." Kaiba said.

_**Back in the duel...**_

"Now, since you already know these cards, I'm sure you know that The Wicked Eraser gains 1000 attack and defense points for each card you control." Strings said, as his Eraser became stronger (ATK: 3000). "Now, Wicked Eraser, attack his life points directly!!" CJ stepped back as the Wicked god card charged for an attack.

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	9. The Wicked Eraser, Part 2

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_Attack!" A young man was dueling a Neo Ghoul. He was a bald young man in a black shirt and red overalls. He had multiple piercings all over his face and he wore purple lipstick. The Neo Ghoul collapsed to his knees as a large blue slime creature attacked him (LP: 0)._

"_Oh yeah!" Kylie exclaimed. "Someone else is dueling the Neo Ghouls!!" The young man turned around. The Neo Ghoul whispered._

_  
"We lured him in... Get him, Strings." He then stood up and walked away. CJ jumped down and looked at Strings._

_  
"Nice duel." He said._

_  
"You... Me... Duel..." Strings said._

"_Deal." CJ said. "Two Locator Cards." Strings simply activated his Duel Disk and drew five cards. CJ activated his as well and drew six cards._

_---_

"_Light and Darkness Dragon! Attack Revival Jam!!" Strings stood there, smiling, as CJ's dragon launched an energy blast at his Jam. CJ's dragon quickly flashed white, then Revival Jam burst into droplets of slime, which fell to the ground and evaporated. CJ's dragon then became weakened (ATK: 2300 / DEF: 1900)._

_  
"What just happened?" Kylie wondered._

"_My dragon can negate spell, trap and monster effects at a cost of 500 attack and defense points." CJ said. "So, I negated Revival Jam's ability to revive itself when destroyed. Your move, Strings."_

_  
"Activate... Nightmare's Steelcage and Judgment of the Desert..." Strings said. CJ's dragon glowed before both cards were destroyed (ATK: 1300 / DEF: 900)._

"_The down side to this effect is that it's automatic." CJ said._

_---_

"_I activate Pyramid of Light and pay 500 life points (LP: 6700 - 500) to summon Sphinx Teleia (ATK: 2500)!" CJ said, summoning a sphinx with a white lion's body, two golden wings, a human head, and red hair. "Go."_

"_Sacrifice... Disciple... Summon... Cyber-Tech Alligator (ATK: 2500)." Strings said, summoning a humanoid alligator in hard red armor. "Attack... Dragon..." CJ watched as his Light and Darkness Dragon was destroyed (LP: 6200 - 1200)._

_---_

_Suddenly, Strings's eyes regained a normal look and he smirked._

"_Prepare yourself!!" He exclaimed._

_  
CJ gasped. "He... He spoke!"_

"I sacrifice all three of my monsters... King's Knight, Homunculus the Alchemic Being and Rampaging Rhynos to summon my ultimate monster..." CJ watched as the sky darkened and lightning began to strike around the area. A mechanical silver dragon-like monster appeared from a crevasse in the ground, surrounded by blue flames. It had two large horns, a long snout, and a blue-green gem on its chest.

"_That beast! It can't be...!"_

"I summon The Wicked Eraser (ATK: ?)!!" Strings exclaimed.

"_You thief!!" CJ shouted. "That card was under lock and key at the Smithsonian!!"_

_---_

"_Big Brother, someone just summoned the first Wicked god." Mokuba's voice said over Kaiba's walkie talkie._

_---_

_  
"The first Wicked god against the the owner of Industrial Illusions... Perfect. I knew inviting him to the tournament would lure out the cards." Kaiba said._

**CHAPTER NINE: The Wicked Eraser, Part 2**

"Now, Wicked Eraser (ATK: 3000), attack his life points directly!!" CJ stepped back as the Wicked god card charged for an attack.

_Oh crap..._ CJ thought, as Wicked Eraser launched a blue flame at him, knocking him down (LP: 3200 - 3000).

"I end my turn." Strings said.

"I activate Lightning Vortex and discard a card to destroy all your face up monsters!!" CJ said. Strings smirked as his monster was destroyed, followed by everything on the field.

"Unfortunately for you... When Wicked Eraser is destroyed, he destroys everything else on the field." Strings said.

"I end my turn by setting a monster in defense mode." CJ said.

"I summon Worm Drake (ATK: 1400)." Strings said, summoning a green worm-like creature. "Attack!" CJ smirked as a clay jar appeared on his field. Inside was a black monster with one red eye.

"You destroyed Morphing Jar, which means that we both discard our hands and draw five new cards." CJ said, drawing a new hand.

"Go." Strings said. CJ drew a card and examined his hand. _That's helpful._ "I lay two cards face down and end my turn."

"I summon Marauding Captain (ATK: 1200) and use his power to summon Trial of Nightmare (ATK: 1300)." Strings said, summoning a knight in blue armor, followed by a black coffin piereced with a fiendish sword. "Worm Drake, attack!"

"I activate Negate Attack and Solemn Wishes! First, your attack is negated and then the battle phase is over."

"I end my turn by activating Jam Breeding Machine." Strings said, as a large machine appeared on his field. It began chugging and churning. "Go."

_I need to draw something to defend my life points, or I'm done for._ CJ thought. He drew a card (LP: 700). "I lay a card face down and end my turn."

"First, my Breeding Machine gives me one Slime Token (ATK: 500)." String said, as a ball of slime appeared on his field. "Now, Worm Drake, end this duel!!"

"I reveal my trap: Call of the Haunted!" CJ said. "Now, I can bring back one monster from the graveyard... and I choose my old friend... Blue Eyes White Dragon (ATK: 3000)!!" CJ smirked as his white dragon made a triumphant return to the field. "Blue Eyes, counter-attack!!" Strings gasped as Blue Eyes launched an attack at his Worm Drake, destroying it and denting Strings's life points (LP: 3000 - 1400).

"I switch my other monsters to defense mode (DEF: 900) (DEF: 400) (DEF: 500)." Strings said. "Go."

"Blue Eyes, destroy Marauding Captain!!" CJ said (LP: 1200), as his dragon launched a blast of white energy at Strings's knight, destroying it. "Go."

"First, I get another Slime Token (ATK: 500), which I'll sacrifice to play Ruthless Denial! I sacrifice my monster to force you to discard a card from your hand." Strings said. CJ discarded a card. "Your move."

CJ drew a card (LP: 1700). "Blue Eyes, attack Trial of Nightmare!! Your move, Strings."

"Let's start with another Slime Token (ATK: 500)." Strings said. "Next, I set a monster in defense mode. Go."

"I activate Painful Choice." CJ said (LP: 2200). "I choose five cards from my deck. Next, you pick one. I add that to my hand, and discard the rest."

"I choose Mystical Space Typhoon." Strings said. CJ added it to his hand and discarded the other cards.

"I play Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy your Jam Breeding Machine!" CJ said, as Strings's machine was destroyed. "Blue Eyes, destroy his Slime Token!!" Strings merely smiled as his Slime Token was destroyed.

"Luckily for me, in this tournament, we don't take damage from battles involving Tokens." He said.

"Go." CJ said.

"I summon Humanoid Slime (DEF: 2000)." Strings said, summoning a blue slime creature in yellow armor. "Go."

"Blue Eyes, attack Humanoid Slime!!" CJ (LP: 2700) said. "Go."

"I set a monster in defense mode." Strings said. "Go."

"Blue Eyes, attack the Slime Token!!" CJ (LP: 3200) said. "Go."

"I summon another defense mode." Strings said. "Go."

"I summon Lord of Dragons (ATK: 1200)." CJ said (LP: 3700). "Blue Eyes, Lord of D, attack his defenses! Go."

"I summon another defense." Strings said. "Go."

"I summon a defense monster." CJ said (LP: 4200). "Blue Eyes, Lord of D! Attack his two defenses!" CJ frowned as Lord of Dragons attack a stone statue (DEF: 1400) and he took a hit to his life points (LP: 4200 - 200). "Go."

"I summon another defense monster." Strings said. "Go."

"I sacrifice Lord of D and my defense monster to summon Andro Sphinx (ATK: 3000)!" CJ said (LP: 4500), summoning a sphinx with a blond-mane and blue armor. "Blue Eyes, attack Guardian Statue!!" CJ said, attacking the stone statue. "Go."

"I set another defense." Strings said. "Go."

"Blue Eyes, Andro Sphinx, attack his defenses!!" CJ said (LP: 5000), as his monster's attack. "Now, thanks to Andro Sphinx's ability, you take damage equal to half the attack power of the monster he destroyed." Strings chuckled as his monster, a Native American-style spirit monster, returned from the graveyard and struck him (LP: 1600 - 250). "Go."

"I.. I pass..." Strings said, falling to his knees.

CJ snapped the final card off of his deck (LP: 5500). _What a duel... I had to use my entire deck... Talk about a close call..._ "Andro Sphinx!! Blue Eyes!! Teach that thief a lesson! Attack his life points!!" Strings fell onto his knees as CJ's two monsters attacked him directly, ending the duel, knocking Strings unconscious, and scattering his deck around the ground. CJ walked over and grabbed The Wicked Eraser.

"I'll be taking that card, you thief." CJ said, slipping the card into his deck.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Seto, the duel just ended! CJ won." Mokuba said.

"I'm not surprised." Kaiba said. "Keep tabs on the rest of the tournament and let me know if another one turns up."

"You got it, Big Brother." Mokuba said.

_**Back in the flood tunnel...**_

"How dare you steal that card from the Smithsonian!?!"

"It was... my master... he already has another Wicked god... and he WILL get the others..." Strings said. "I promise it..."

"And, just who is your master?" CJ asked.

"My master is... Bandit Keith..."

"What?! Bandit Keith is behind all this?!" CJ exclaimed. "So, he's the one behind the return of the Neo Ghouls..."

"Yes... And he will get... the Wicked gods..." Strings said, before collapsing.

"Not if I have anything to say about it." CJ said, taking Strings's two Locator Cards as well.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"I sacrifice my monster for Jinzo (ATK: 2400)! Jinzo, attack his Machine King (ATK: 2200)!" Joey was dueling a young man with green hair, garbed in a pink shirt and shorts. The boy frowned as his monster, a large machine with red shoulderpads and rocket fists, and a blue body, was destroyed by Joey's monster, a humanoid monster in green armor and red goggles.

"You're getting good, Joey." The boy, ESP duelist Espa Roba said (LP: 1550).

"Thanks, Roba." Joey said (LP: 2300). "Your move."

_**Later...**_

"Sorry, Joey, but you're not beating my monsters!" Espa said (LP: 550). He had three monsters on the field, a robotic knight in red armor (ATK: 1600), a mechanical, winged wolf (ATK: 1200) and a mechanical falcon (LP: 1400). Joey also had three monsters on his field: Jinzo (ATK: 2400), a tan-skinned, black haired fisherman on a whale (ATK: 1850), and a large female insect (ATK: 2200).

"Oh really, Roba?" Joey questioned.

"Yeah." Espa said. "I activate the quick-play spell card Limiter Removal, doubling my monsters' attack points (ATK: 3200) (ATK: 2400) (ATK: 2800)!" Joey chuckled as his three monsters vanished and he laid a monster card on his duel disk.

"I sacrifice my three monsters to summon Gilford the Lightning (ATK: 2800)!!" Joey said, summoning a warrior in silver armor and a red cape. "Now, his ability destroys all your monsters." Espa frowned as his monsters vanished. "Now, Gilford, attack him and end this duel!" Espa crumbled to his knees as his life points were depleted (LP: 0).

"Nice duel, Joey." Espa said. "Here's my Locator Card and rarest card. Good luck, my friend."

"Thanks, Espa." Joey said. He looked at three younger boys behind Espa, who all closely resembled Espa. "Smell ya later, Roba Brothers." He said, before walking away, followed closely by Serenity and Tristan.

_**Later, at Industrial Illusions...**_

CJ and Kylie walked into the Industrial Illusions building.

"Why are we here, CJ?" Kylie asked.

"With any luck, there should still be a Wicked god card here. And, I'm taking it with me so Bandit Keith can't get his greasy hands on it." CJ said.


	10. Wrath of the Masked Beast

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_Attack!" A young man was dueling a Neo Ghoul. He was a bald young man in a black shirt and red overalls. He had multiple piercings all over his face and he wore purple lipstick. The Neo Ghoul collapsed to his knees as a large blue slime creature attacked him (LP: 0)._

"_Oh yeah!" Kylie exclaimed. "Someone else is dueling the Neo Ghouls!!" The young man turned around. The Neo Ghoul whispered._

_  
"We lured him in... Get him, Strings." He then stood up and walked away. CJ jumped down and looked at Strings._

_  
"Nice duel." He said._

_  
"You... Me... Duel..." Strings said._

"_Deal." CJ said. "Two Locator Cards." Strings simply activated his Duel Disk and drew five cards. CJ activated his as well and drew six cards._

_---_

_Suddenly, Strings's eyes regained a normal look and he smirked._

"_Prepare yourself!!" He exclaimed._

_  
CJ gasped. "He... He spoke!"_

"I sacrifice all three of my monsters... King's Knight, Homunculus the Alchemic Being and Rampaging Rhynos to summon my ultimate monster..." CJ watched as the sky darkened and lightning began to strike around the area. A mechanical silver dragon-like monster appeared from a crevasse in the ground, surrounded by blue flames. It had two large horns, a long snout, and a blue-green gem on its chest.

"_That beast! It can't be...!"_

"I summon The Wicked Eraser (ATK: ?)!!" Strings exclaimed.

"_You thief!!" CJ shouted. "That card was under lock and key at the Smithsonian!!"_

_---_

"_Big Brother, someone just summoned the first Wicked god." Mokuba's voice said over Kaiba's walkie talkie._

_---_

_  
"The first Wicked god against the the owner of Industrial Illusions... Perfect. I knew inviting him to the tournament would lure out the cards." Kaiba said._

_---_

_CJ snapped the final card off of his deck (LP: 5500). What a duel... I had to use my entire deck... Talk about a close call... "Andro Sphinx!! Blue Eyes!! Teach that thief a lesson! Attack his life points!!" Strings fell onto his knees as CJ's two monsters attacked him directly, ending the duel, knocking Strings unconscious, and scattering his deck around the ground. CJ walked over and grabbed The Wicked Eraser._

"_I'll be taking that card, you thief." CJ said, slipping the card into his deck._

_---_

"_How dare you steal that card from the Smithsonian!?!"_

"_It was... my master... he already has another Wicked god... and he WILL get the others..." Strings said. "I promise it..."_

"_And, just who is your master?" CJ asked._

_  
"My master is... Bandit Keith..."_

"_What?! Bandit Keith is behind all this?!" CJ exclaimed. "So, he's the one behind the return of the Neo Ghouls..."_

"_Yes... And he will get... the Wicked gods..." Strings said, before collapsing._

"_Not if I have anything to say." CJ said, taking Strings's two Locator Cards as well._

**CHAPTER TEN: Wrath of the Masked Beast, Part 1**

CJ and Kylie walked into his office in Industrial Illusions. He walked over to the north wall and pulled the lantern hanging nearby, revealing a secret passage.

"Whoa... Now that's cool." Kylie said. CJ and Kylie walked through the passage until they came to a steel-walled room. On the door was a keypad. CJ punched in a code and the door opened. He walked in a grabbed a card out of a glass case in the center. It held a picture of a skeletal muscular, winged warrior, similar to Obelisk the Tormentor.

"The Wicked Dreadroot... The second Wicked god card." CJ said. "With this and the Wicked Eraser, I'll have no trouble getting the third card from Bandit Keith. Now, we better go find Yugi. We're gonna need his help."

_**Later...**_

CJ and Kylie walked through Battle City, looking for Yugi.

"He has to be around here somewhere..." CJ said.

"Hey! CJ!" Someone shouted. CJ turned around and saw Yugi and Tea walking toward him.

"Yugi!" CJ said, as the two reached him and Kylie. "I'm gonna need your help. There are more Neo Ghouls out there. I just dueled Strings, and it turns out that the Neo Ghouls have stolen a rare group of cards... The Wicked gods."

"Wicked gods?" Yugi asked.

"Yes. They rival the strength of even your god cards, Yugi." CJ said. "And like your gods, there's three of them. Strings had one, which I won off of him. The other was hidden at Industrial Illusions, and I just grabbed it. Strings said the leader of the Neo Ghouls has the last one."

"It's not Marik again, is it?" Yugi asked.

"No. This time, it's Bandit Keith." CJ said. "I'm gonna need you to help me defeat the Neo Ghouls." It was then that two Neo Ghouls stepped in front of the group. The first was short and wore a white mask so that only half of his face was visible. The second was tall and wore a red mask so that only half of his face was visible as well.

"You two aren't going anywhere." The short one said. "Not until you lose to us in a duel and hand over your Wicked god cards, CJ. And you'll hand over your Egyptian god cards as well, Yugi."

"That's Lumis and Umbra!!" Yugi exclaimed. "Kaiba and I dueled them in the first Battle City!"

CJ and Yugi activated their Duel Disks and drew their opening hands.

"First off, here's some simple rules: You two are a team, as are we. Each duelist can use his monsters to defend his partner, and we all have 8000 life points, totalling 16000 for each team. Now, are we ready?"

CJ and Yugi nodded. "I'll start." CJ said. "I lay one card face down and summon Big Shield Gardna (DEF: 2600)." CJ smirked as a black-haired, muscular man appeared on his field, protected by a large shield. "Your move, Umbra."

"I summon Shining Abyss (ATK: 1600)." Umbra said, summoning a metallic blue monster with golden wings. "Next, I lay two cards face down. Go, Yugi."

"I also summon Big Shield Gardna (DEF: 2600)." Yugi said, summoning the same monster as CJ. "Next, I lay one card face down and end my turn."

"I equip Mask of Brutality to Umbra's Shining Abyss (ATK: 2600)." Lumis said. "Next, I use De-Spell on your facedown card, CJ."

"Too bad it's not a spell card, Lumis." CJ smirked.

"Then I end my turn." Lumis said.

"I pass." CJ said.

"I summon Rogue Doll (ATK: 1600)." Umbra said, summoning a floating purple doll. "Shining Abyss, attack CJ's Gardna!! And, since I attacked your monster and it wasn't destroyed, it switches to attack mode (ATK: 100). Now, Rogue Doll, attack Big Shield Gardna!"

"I reveal my trap!! Draining Shield!" CJ said, as Umbra's Rogue Doll was blocked by a blue barrier. "First, your monster's attack is negated. Next, I gain life points equal to your monster's attack points (LP: 9600).

"I end my turn." Umbra said.

"I summon Red Gadget (DEF: 1500)." Yugi said, summoning a monster made up of red gears. "Go."

"I pay 1000 life points to keep Mask of Brutality in play (LP: 8000 - 1000)." Lumis said. "Go."

"I summon Yellow Gadget (DEF: 1200), which lets me add Green Gadget to my hand." CJ said, summoning a yellow monster similar to Yugi's Red Gadget. "Next, I switch Big Shield Gardna (DEF: 2600). I end my turn."

"Rogue Doll, attack Yellow Gadget!" Umbra said. CJ watched as his monster vanished. "Shining Abyss, attack Big Shield Gardna!!" Big Shield Gardna took the hit but then switched into attack mode (ATK: 100). "Go."

"I sacrifice Red Gadget and Big Shield Gardna to summon my favorite monster..." Yugi held a card up and smiled as his two monster vanished into a pillar of light. When the light vanished, a blue haired mage in a purple robe appeared on the field. "Come forth, Dark Magician (ATK: 2500)!! Dark Magician, attack Rogue Doll! Dark Magic Attack!!" Umbra watched as his doll was destroyed (LP: 8000 - 900). "Go."

"I pay 1000 life points to keep my mask in play (LP: 7000 - 1000)." Lumis said. "Go."

"I switch Big Shield Gardna to defense mode (DEF: 2600) and summon Green Gadget (DEF: 600), which lets me add Red Gadget to my hand." CJ said, summoning a green gear monster. "Go."

"I activate two trap cards: Success Probability Zero Percent and Simultaneous Loss!" Umbra said. "First, I send two Fusion Monsters in your Fusion Deck to the graveyard, Yugi." Yugi discarded two of his fusions. "Next, Simultaneous Loss forces us all to discard the top card on our decks to the graveyard. Shining Abyss, attack CJ's Green Gadget!! Go, Yugi."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down and summon a defense monster." Lumis said.

"I play The Shallow Grave, allowing us all to summon a monster from our graveyard face-down in defense mode!" CJ said. "Next, I sacrifice my two defense monsters to summon the one... the only... the Blue Eyes White Dragon (ATK: 3000)!!!" CJ smiled as his white dragon emerged onto the field, striking terror into Lumis and Umbra.

"That...Th-that monster!!" Lumis said.

"That's right... It's the same monster Kaiba summoned when he and Yugi dueled you." CJ said. "Blue Eyes, attack Shining Abyss!!"

"Lumis, you better have something to save my monster!!" Umbra exclaimed.

"I can do this!" Lumis said. "I defend Umbra's monster with one of my defenses!"

"I end my turn." CJ said.

"I summon a monster in defense mode, and switch Shining Abyss to defense mode as well (DEF: 800)." Umbra said. "Go."

"Dark Magician, attack Lumis's defense monster!!" Yugi exclaimed. Lumis watched as his only defense was obliterated. "Go."

Lumis pressed a button on a device at his waist, activating a microphone in his mask. "Umbra, I have to clear the field."

"Do it, Lumis." Umbra said.

"I'll choose to keep my life points and let Mask of Brutality go to the graveyard." Lumis said. "Next, I play Dark Hole, clearing the field!! Finally, I lay two cards face down and summon Archfiend Soldier (ATK: 1900)." Lumis smirked as a purple fiend in a green cape emerged on the field. "Archfiend Soldier, attack CJ directly!" CJ stumbled as he was struck by Lumis's fiend (LP: 9600 - 1900). "Go."

"I activate Painful Choice!" CJ said. "I choose five cards from my deck and reveal them to you. You then pick one, and I send the rest to the graveyard." CJ held up five cards. Lumis and Umbra chose one and he added it to his hand. "Now, I lay a card face down and summon a monster in defense mode. Go."

"I summon Indomitable Fighter Lei Lei (ATK: 2300)." Umbra said, summoning a muscular warrior in brown armor. "Go."

"I lay a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "And, I end my turn."

"Archfiend Soldier, take out Yugi's defense!" Lumis said. "Go."

"I play Advance Ritual Art!" CJ said. "I sacrifice Queen's Knight and Kaiser Sea Horse from my deck to summon a Level 8 ritual monster from my deck..." CJ smiled as a warrior appeared on his field. It was garbed in dark blue armor with gold accenting, it held a long sword and it had a flowing red ponytail. "Come forth, Black Luster Soldier (ATK: 3000)!!"

"CJ... You have Black Luster Soldier?" Yugi asked.

"Yup." CJ said. "And it's gonna wipe these Neo Ghouls out. Black Luster Soldier, destroy Archfiend Soldier!!"

"I defend with Indomitable Fighter Lei Lei!" Umbra said.

"And I activate Mask of Weakness to weaken Black Luster Soldier's strength (ATK: 3000 - 700)." Lumis said. CJ frowned as his soldier and Umbra's fighter were both destroyed.

"I end my turn." CJ said.

"I lay two cards face down and summon Monk Fighter (ATK: 1300)." Umbra said, summoning a gray-haired fighter in a yellow robe. "Monk Fighter, attack Yugi directly!!"

"I defend with my face down Red Gadget (DEF: 1500)!" CJ said, as Umbra's Monk attacked his gear monster, leaving both monsters unfazed.

"Lucky for me, I don't take any damage when Monk Fighter battles, so I'll end my turn." Umbra said.

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "Go."

"Archfiend Soldier, attack CJ's Red Gadget!!" Lumis commanded, as his monster struck CJ's gadget monster, destroying it. "Go."

"I lay one card face down and activate Call of the Haunted!" CJ said. "Thanks to this trap, I can bring one monster back from the graveyard... and I choose my Blue Eyes White Dragon (ATK: 3000)!! Blue Eyes, attack Archfiend Soldier!!" Lumis gasped as CJ's dragon launched an attack at his monster. He watched as his monster was destroyed and his life points took a hit (LP: 6000 - 1100). "Go."

"I lay a card face down." Umbra said. "Monk Fighter, destroy Yugi's defense!" Yugi watched as his defense was shattered. "Go."

_Man! We need to get a better attack force out!_ Yugi thought, reaching for his deck. "I pass." He frowned.

"I summon Goblin Recon Squad (ATK: 1700)." Lumis said. "Goblins, attack Yugi!!"

"I defend Yugi with my trap: Sakuretsu Armor!" CJ said. "So, your Goblins are destroyed."

"I end my turn." Lumis said.

"Good." CJ said, drawing a card. "Blue Eyes, attack Lumis directly!!"

"Monk Fighter, defend Lumis!" Umbra said. "And, I reveal my trap: Lone Wolf! Now, my Monk Fighter can't be destroyed in battle. And thanks to his effect, I take no battle damage."

"I end my turn." CJ said.

"Monk Fighter, attack Yugi directly!!" Umbra said.

"Blue Eyes, defend Yugi!!" Blue Eyes jumped in front of Monk Fighter, deflecting its attack. And because of Umbra's trap and Monk Fighter's ability, both monster and duelists survived the battle.

"Go." Umbra said.

"I lay a card face down." Yugi said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down as well." Lumis said. "Go."

_This isn't good! With Umbra's trap and his monster's ability, we can't get past these guys. I need to draw something to turn this duel around, and I need to do it soon..._ CJ thought, reaching for his deck. _Heart of the Cards... Guide me..._


	11. Wrath of the Masked Beast, Part 2

_**Hey Everyone! Thankfully, this entire fic is backed up to my flash drive, so even while my laptop is still down, I can use access to the internet on other computers to update this, so while everything else if at a stand-still, you guys can still come check out the continued adventures of Yugi Moto and his friends.**_

* * *

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_Yugi!" CJ said, as the two reached him and Kylie. "I'm gonna need your help. There are more Neo Ghouls out there. I just dueled Strings, and it turns out that the Neo Ghouls have stolen a rare group of cards... The Wicked gods."_

"Wicked gods?" Yugi asked.

"_Yes. They rival the strength of even your god cards, Yugi." CJ said. "And like your gods, there's three of them. Strings had one, which I won off of him. The other was hidden at Industrial Illusions, and I just grabbed it. Strings said the leader of the Neo Ghouls has the last one."_

_  
"It's not Marik again, is it?" Yugi asked._

"_No. This time, it's Bandit Keith." CJ said. "I'm gonna need you to help me defeat the Neo Ghouls." It was then that two Neo Ghouls stepped in front of the group. The first was short and wore a white mask so that only half of his face was visible. The second was tall and wore a red mask so that only half of his face was visible as well._

"_You two aren't going anywhere." The short one said. "Not until you lose to us in a duel and hand over your Wicked god cards, CJ. And you'll hand over your Egyptian god cards as well, Yugi."_

"_That's Lumis and Umbra!!" Yugi exclaimed. "Kaiba and I dueled them in the first Battle City!"_

_CJ and Yugi activated their Duel Disks and drew their opening hands. _

_---_

"_I lay two cards face down and summon Monk Fighter (ATK: 1300)." Umbra said, summoning a gray-haired fighter in a yellow robe. "Monk Fighter, attack Yugi directly!!"_

"_I defend with my face down Red Gadget (DEF: 1500)!" CJ said, as Umbra's Monk attacked his gear monster, leaving both monsters unfazed._

_  
"Lucky for me, I don't take any damage when Monk Fighter battles, so I'll end my turn." Umbra said._

_---_

"_Monk Fighter, defend Lumis!" Umbra said. "And, I reveal my trap: Lone Wolf! Now, my Monk Fighter can't be destroyed in battle. And thanks to his effect, I take no battle damage."_

"_I end my turn." CJ said._

_  
"Monk Fighter, attack Yugi directly!!" Umbra said._

_  
"Blue Eyes, defend Yugi!!" Blue Eyes jumped in front of Monk Fighter, deflecting its attack. And because of Umbra's trap and Monk Fighter's ability, both monster and duelists survived the battle._

"_Go." Umbra said._

"_I lay a card face down." Yugi said. "Go."_

"_I lay a card face down as well." Lumis said. "Go."_

_This isn't good! With Umbra's trap and his monster's ability, we can't get past these guys. I need to draw something to turn this duel around, and I need to do it soon... CJ thought, reaching for his deck. Heart of the Cards... Guide me..._

**CHAPTER ELEVEN: Wrath of the Masked Beast, Part 2**

CJ reached for his deck.

_I need something to destroy that trap card!_ He thought, drawing a card. _That might help._ "I lay one card face down and end my turn."

"I pass." Umbra said.

"I pass as well." Yugi said. _I hope CJ can keep defending me._

"I summon Grand Tiki Elder (DEF: 800)." Lumis said, summoning a green ghost-like creature in purple tribal armor. "Go."

"I activate my face down trap to summon my trap-monster, Stronghold the Moving Fortress (DEF: 2000)!" CJ said, summoning a large machine, with three empty, gear shaped holes, labeled with a green "G", a red "R" and a yellow "Y". "Now, Blue Eyes, destroy Grand Tiki Elder!!"

"Monk Fighter, defend the Elder!!" Umbra said, as his monster blocked the attack.

"I end my turn." CJ said.

"I pass." Umbra smirked.

"I pass again." Yugi said.

"I summon another defense monster." Lumis said. "Go."

"I activate Spell Absorption and then play Shield Crush to destroy Lumis's Tiki Elder!!" CJ said. "And, thanks to Spell Absorption, I gain 500 life points (LP: 8200). Go."

"I lay one card face down." Umbra said. "And since I know you'll defend Yugi with your dragon, I'll end my turn."

"I lay one card face down." Yugi said. "Go."

"I pass." Lumis said.

"I activate Pot of Greed, letting me draw two cards and boosting my life points, courtesy of Spell Absorption." CJ said, drawing two cards (LP: 8700). "Go."

"I pass." Umbra said. "Go."

"I pass as well." Yugi said.

"I play Card Destruction!!" Lumis said. "Now, we all discard our entire hands and draw the same number of cards from our decks.

_No! That means I have to discard the four Exodia pieces in my hand!!_ CJ realized, as he tossed his hand and drew a new one. He looked at his deck. _And, on top of that, I'm almost out of cards... And if I run out, Yugi's on his own!_

"Next, I play Soul Release to remove 5 cards from any of our graveyards from play. Let me see your graveyard, CJ." Lumis said. He scanned CJ's graveyard and smiled. "I'll remove from play your five pieces of Exodia!!!"

"No!!" CJ exclaimed. _That means my Backup Soldier trap is useless!_

"I end my turn." Lumis said.

CJ drew a card and smirked. _Just what I needed._ "I play Premature Burial (LP: 10200 - 800) to bring back Red Gadget (ATK: 1300). Now, I sacrifice my three monsters to summon my ultimate creature..." Lumis, Umbra and Yugi gasped in shock as the skies darkened and a new monster appeared behind CJ. It resembles Yugi's Obelisk the Tormentor, but it was skeletal and zombie-like. "The Wicked Dreadroot (ATK: 4000)!!! Next, I activate Lightning Vortex (LP: 9900) and Giant Trunade (LP: 10400). First, I discard a card and Lightning Vortex destroys all your face up monsters, so say goodbye to your Monk Fighter."

"No!! My strategy!" Umbra exclaimed.

"Next, Giant Trunade returns all the spells and traps on the field to their owners' hands." CJ said. "Now, Wicked Dreadroot, attack Umbra's life points directly!!" Umbra fell onto his back as CJ's Wicked Dreadroot punched him (LP: 7100 - 4000). "Go."

"Your Wicked god isn't as strong as you think. I summon Monk Fighter (ATK: 750) and... Wait a minute! What happened to my monster's attack power?" Umbra said.

"The Wicked Dreadroot cuts the attack of every other monster on the field in half." CJ said.

"I lay three cards face down and end my turn." Umbra said.

"I summon a monster in defense mode and lay three cards face down." Yugi said. "Go."

"I lay three cards face down." Lumis said. "Go." CJ drew a card and Lumis activate one of his cards. "I activate Thunder of Ruler so you must skip your Battle Phase."

"I pass." CJ said. "Go."

"I activate Lone Wolf and the spell card, Kaminote Blow!" Umbra said. "Monk Fighter, attack The Wicked Dreadroot!!" CJ chuckled as Umbra's Monk struck his beast. "Thanks to my Monk and my trap, he stays on the field and I take no damage, but wait until you see my spell's power..." Suddenly, The Wicked Dreadroot exploded.

"Oh no!!" CJ exclaimed. "Kaminote Blow destroys every monster that battles Monk Fighter this turn!" _That's it... I'm done..._

"Go." Umbra said.

"I pass." Yugi said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down." Lumis said. "Go."

"I pass." CJ said with defeat in his voice.

"Monk Fighter (ATK: 1300), attack CJ's life points!" Umbra shouted.

"I defend with my monster!" Yugi said as his defense revealed itself. It was a small white puff. "Marshmallon! And since you attacked it, you take 1000 points of damage!" Umbra gasped as Yugi's monster leaped into the air and bite his arm (LP: 3100 - 1000). "And he can't be destroyed in battle."

_Thanks, Yugi..._ CJ thought.

"Go." Umbra said.

"I activate Marshmallon Glasses." Yugi said. "Now, you can only attack Marshmallon. Next, I summon Stronghold the Moving Fortress (DEF: 2000). Go, Lumis."

"I activate Mask of Dispel on your Marshmallon Glasses! Now, during each of your Standby Phases, Yugi, you lose 500 life points. Go, CJ." Lumis said.

"I lay one card face down." CJ said.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Patrician of Darkness (ATK: 2000), attack X-Head Cannon!" Kaiba stood in south Battle City, dueling a young man. The boy had a white haired, blue skinned fiend in black armor and a red cape. Kaiba however had a blue machine monster on his field, as well as a knight in purple and blue armor. Kaiba watched as his machine was destroyed (LP: 3500 - 200). "Go."

"I sacrifice my Kaiser Sea Horse to summon Blue Eyes White Dragon (ATK: 3000)." Kaiba said, summoning his white dragon. "Attack!" Kaiba smiled as his dragon destroyed the kid's Patrician of Darkness (LP: 1850 - 1000).

_**And on the other side of Battle City...**_

A white-haired boy in a blue-and-white striped shirt and jeans was dueling a man with tanned skin and spiked gray hair in a gray tank top and tan shorts.

"I activate Hinotama times three!" The man, Marik Ishtar, said. "This deals you 1500 points of direct damage!" The boy, Bakura, stumbled back as fireballs rained from the sky, lowering his life points (LP: 1550 - 1500). "You're down to 50 life points. Make this move count. I end my turn." Bakura smirked.

"Ready for this, Marik?" Bakura asked. "I activate my final card: Spirit Message 'L'! I've assembled the word 'FINAL', which means I've won the duel." Marik gapsed as an explosion rocked the field (LP: 0).

_**Back with Yugi & CJ...**_

"Your move, Umbra." CJ said.

"I activate a second Kaminote Blow and attack Marshmallon with Monk Fighter!!" Umbra said.

"I reveal Spellbinding Circle!" Yugi said. "Now, your monster can't attack and it loses 700 attack points (ATK: 1300 - 700).

"I end my turn." Umbra said.

"Now, Yugi, Mask of Dispel takes 500 life points away from you for Marshmallon Glasses." Lumis said. Yugi drew a card (LP: 8000 - 500).

"I sacrifice Marshmallon and Stronghold to summon Gandora, the Dragon of Destruction (ATK: 0)!" Yugi said. "Next, I play half my life points (LP: 7500 - 3750) to destroy and remove from play every card on the field, except my dragon! Go, Gandora! Clear the field!!" Everyone gasped as the field was cleared leaving Gandora alone. "Now, Gandora gains 300 points for every card just destroyed (ATK: 3600). Gandora, attack Umbra directly!!" Umbra fell to the ground as Yugi's monster destroyed his life points (LP: 0) before vanishing. "Go, Lumis."

"I pass." Lumis said.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"I play Polymerization to fuse the Blue Eyes White Dragon on my field with the two in my hand to summon Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon (ATK: 4500)." Kaiba said, summoning his three-headed dragon.

"O-Oh n-no! N-not that m-monster!" Kaiba's opponent gasped.

"You should never have challenged the great Seto Kaiba!" Kaiba said. "Ultimate Dragon, attack him directly!!" Kaiba's opponent fell to the ground as his life points were depleted (LP: 0). "Now, hand over your four locator cards." Kaiba's opponent handed over his Locator Cards. Kaiba smiled.

"Eight Locator Cards..." He said. "Let's see who else makes it to the finals."

_**Back with Yugi & CJ...**_

"Go, CJ." Lumis said. CJ looked down at the ground and dropped his cards (LP: 0).

"CJ! No!!"

"I'm all out of cards..." CJ said. "This is all on you, Yugi. Defeat Lumis or we're done..."

"Well, since CJ and Umbra are out of the duel, it's my move!" Yugi said, snapping a card off of his deck. "I summon Green Gadget (ATK: 1400) and lay a card face down. Green Gadget, attack Lumis directly!!" Lumis stumbled as Yugi's green gear monsters struck him (LP: 4900 - 1400). "Go."

"I activate Curse of the Masked Beast from my hand and sacrifice Mask of Darkness and Hieracosphinx from my hand to summon The Masked Beast (ATK: 3200)!" Lumis said, summoning a large beast. It had a human-like upper body, with a mask covering its head, and a fiendish beast-like lower body. "Next, I play Heavy Storm to destroy your face down card! Now, Masked Beast, attack Green Gadget!!" CJ and Yugi gasped as Lumis's beast destroyed Green Gadget (LP: 3750 - 1800). "I end my turn by placing a card face down. Go."

"I play Monster Reborn to-"

"Mystical Space Typhoon!!" Lumis exclaimed.

"I lay a card face down and play Card of Sanctity, so we each draw until we have six cards in our hand." Yugi said, drawing three cards. Lumis drew five. "I play Black Luster Ritual and sacrifice two monsters from my hand to summon Black Luster Soldier (DEF: 2500)." The red-haired warrior in blue armor emerged onto the field, followed by an armored warrior on a purple horse. "Then, I lay a card face down and summon Swift Gaia the Fierce Knight (DEF: 2100), since it's the only card in my hand. And, since my hand is now empty, I can draw three new cards. Finally, I lay one card face down. Go."

"I activate Fissure and destroy Swift Gaia!" Lumis said, smirking. "Now, Masked Beast, destroy Black Luster Soldier!"

"I activate Mirror Force!!" Yugi said, as a reflective barrier returned Masked Beast's attack, destroying it.

"I lay two cards face down." Lumis said. Yugi drew a card. "I reveal Thunder of Ruler, preventing you from conducting your Battle Phase."

"I switch Black Luster Soldier to attack mode and equip him with Mage Power, boosting his attack and defense by 500 for each spell and trap on my field (ATK: 4500)." Yugi said. "Go."

"I play Earthquake to switch Black Luster Soldier to defense mode (DEF: 4000)." Lumis said. "Next, I use Smashing Ground to destroy your defense monster!" Yugi watched as his monster was destroyed. "Go."

"I discard one card to special summon The Tricky (ATK: 2000)." Yugi said, summoning a jester-like monster in a yellow-and-black costume and blue cape. On its head and chest were two red question marks. "Tricky, attack!" Lumis stumbled back as The Tricky struck him (LP: 3500 - 2000). "Go."

"I pass." Lumis said. "Go."

"Good. I sacrifice the Tricky to summon Dark Magician Girl (ATK: 2000)." Yugi said, summoning a blond mage in a blue shirt and hat, and pink skirt. "And she gains 300 attack points for each Dark Magician or Magician of Black Chaos in the graveyard (ATK: 2600). Dark Magician Girl, attack Lumis directly and end this!!" CJ smirked as Yugi defeated the second Neo Ghoul, ending the duel.

"Now, hand over your Locator Cards and I'll be nice enough to let you keep your rare cards." CJ said. He and Yugi then took their Locator Cards. "Just tell Keith that he's not getting his hand on the Wicked gods."

_**Meanwhile...**_

Joey was standing on a floating platform in a pool in Domino Aquarium. Standing against him in a duel was Mako Tsunami. Mako had a large red crab with a turtle shell on its back (ATK: 2750) and Joey had a fisherman on a shark that looked similar to Mako (ATK: 2050).

"Ready for this, Joey?" Mako asked. "Crab Turtle, attack Legendary Fisherman!!"

"I activate Rush Recklessly to increase my Fisherman's attack power (ATK: 2750)." Joey said. "Now, both monsters are destroyed."

"I end my turn." Mako said.

"I lay two cards face down and summon Axe Raider (ATK: 1700)." Joey said, summoning a purple-haired warrior in gold-and-red armor.

"I activate Torrential Tribute!" Mako said, destroying all monsters on the field.

"Go." Joey said.

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Mako said. "Go."

"I summon Kojikocy (ATK: 1500)." Joey said, summoning a gray-haired, bearded warrior in green armor. "Attack his defense!" Mako watched as his defense was destroyed. "Go."

"I pass." Mako said.

"Kojikocy, attack Mako's life points!" Mako stumbled as Joey's warrior struck him (LP: 2900 - 1500). "Go."

"I play Salvage to add two water monsters with an attack of 1500 of less to my hand from my graveyard." Mako said. "Next, I lay a monster in defense mode and lay a card face down. Go."

"Kojikocy, attack!" Joey said, as his warrior destroyed Mako's defense. "Go."

"I play Monster Reborn to revive the monster you just destroyed, who I'll then sacrifice for Levia Dragon- Daedulus (ATK: 2800)!" Mako said, as a large sea serpent appeared on his field. "Attack!!" Joey watched as his monster was obliterated (LP: 2000 - 1300). "Go."

"I activate Scapegoat to summon four Sheep Tokens (DEF: 0 [x4])." Joey said. "Next, I play Heavy Storm, destroying all spells and traps on the field, including your Legendary Ocean!" The water level below the duelists lowered and Mako's dragon was weakened (ATK: 2600). "Finally, I lay a card face down. Go."

"Levia Dragon! Attack!" Joey watched as one of his tokens vanished. "Go."

"I play Card Destruction, so we each discard our hands and draw the same number of cards from our decks." Joey said. "I activate Call of the Haunted to bring back Goblin Attack Force (ATK: 2300)." Then, a group of green goblins in tan breastplates, purple muscle shirts and yellow helmets appeared on the field. "Next, I play Smashing Ground, which will destroy your dragon! Finally, Goblin Attack Force, attack Mako directly!!" Mako fell into the pool below as Joey's goblins attack (LP: 0).

"Good duel, Joey." Mako said. "Here. My two Locator Cards and my Levia Dragon."

"Nah, Mako." Joey said. "I already got your Legendary Fisherman. I don't wanna take your dragon, too. You keep that."

"Thanks, Joey." Mako said. "And good luck in the tournament."

_**Back with Yugi and CJ...**_

"Nice work, Yugi." CJ said. "We did it. Now, I assume we'll meet in the finals."

"I hope so." Yugi said.

"Cool." CJ said. "We'll catch you later. Come on, Kylie." He looked around and saw that Kylie had vanished. "Kylie? Kylie!"

"Where could she be?" Tea asked.

"I... I don't know. She was just with us." CJ said. "Kylie! KYLIE!!!"


	12. Sting of the Scorpion

**CHAPTER TWELVE: Sting of the Scorpion**

"Kylie!"

"Where could she be?"

"How did she just disappear?" CJ wondered.

"Kylie!" Yugi called out.

"Kylie, can you hear me?!" Tea shouted.

_**Meanwhile...**_

Kylie awoke to find herself tied up in a chair in a dark room.

_Where am I?_ She wondered. A door opened and a Neo Ghoul with spiked red hair and an eyepatch walked in.

"Good." He said in a gruff Australian voice. "You're awake." He ripped the duct tape off of Kylie's mouth, causing her to cry out in pain.

"Yeeeowwch!" She screamed. "Who the heck are you?!"

"My name is Scorpio." The man said. "I have brought you here under Bandit Keith's orders."

"You're a Neo Ghoul." Kylie realized.

"Bingo." Scorpio said. "Did you figure that out all by yourself or did someone help you?"

"Ha ha, very funny." Kylie said.

"I thought it was." Scorpio said.

"What do you want with me?" Kylie asked.

"You're bait." Scorpio said.

"For CJ?"

"Exactly, mate." Scorpio said. Kylie looked in the corner of the room and saw a Duel Disk on the floor, with a deck in it. She looked on top of the deck and saw three Locator Cards.

"How about we duel?" Kylie asked. "I win, you hand over all three of your Locator Cards."

"Ha! Why should I wager my three Locator Cards when you only have one?" Scorpio asked.

"Because if you'll wager all three of your Locator Cards, I'll wager my entire dueling deck." Kylie said.

"A chance to destroy you, lure CJ and score the rare Five-Headed Dragon?" Scorpio wondered. "You've got a deal, kid." He then grabbed a Duel Disk and handed it to Kylie. "Here's your Duel Disk, kid. Now, let's duel."

"Since my deck is on the line, I'll begin." Kylie said. "And, I'll start by summoning Blizzard Dragon (ATK: 1800)." Kylie then summoned a blue dragon to her field. It flapped its wings, releasing an icy mist. "Go."

"I pass." Scorpio said.

"Too easy." Kylie said. "Blizzard Dragon, attack Scorpio's life points directly." Scorpio braced himself as Kylie's dragon shot a blast of ice pellets at him, taking a chunk out of his life points (LP: 4000 - 1800). "Next, I lay two cards face down and end my turn."

"I play Doriado's Blessing!" Scorpio said. "I sacrifice a monster from my hand to summon Elemental Mistress Doriado (ATK: 1200)!" A blond-haired female mage in a blue robe, purple armor and a red helmet. "Next, I equip her with Stim-Pack and Book of Secret Arts, increasing my mistress's strength (ATK: 2200). Doriado, attack Blizzard Dragon!" Kylie watched as Scorpio's maiden attacked and destroyed her dragon (LP: 4000 - 400). "Go."

"I lay a monster in defense mode." Kylie said. "Go."

"First, thanks to Stim-Pack, my monster loses 200 attack points (ATK: 2200 - 200)." Scorpio said. "Next, I summon Dark Elf (ATK: 2000)." Then, a purple-haired, dark-skinned elf in a dark green robe appeared on the field. "Doriado, attack the girl's defense! Go."

"I summon a defense monster." Kylie said.

"Stim-Pack now decreases Doriado's power again (ATK: 2000 - 200)." Scorpio said. "Doriado, attack her defense! Go."

_Why isn't his elf attacking?_ Kylie wondered. _Wait! CJ told me about Dark Elf!_

---

"_One card that is good to defend your life points if you can get it early is Dark Elf." CJ said._

_  
"2000 attack points?" Kylie asked. "Wow, she could win the duel quickly."_

_  
"Not quite." CJ said. "Sure, her attack points are high for a level four monster, but she requires a cost of 1000 life points to attack. So, she's a good card to defend your life points, but if you want to keep your life points, it may be better not to attack with her."_

---

_So that's why she's just sitting there._

"I pass." Kylie said.

"Stim-Pack, do your thing (ATK: 1800 - 200)." Scorpio said. "Next, I pay 1000 life points (LP: 2200 - 1000) and attack with both my monsters." Kylie reached for her Duel Disk as Scorpio's two monsters charged at her.

"I reveal my trap: Gravity Bind!" She said. "Now, level four or higher monsters can't attack. So, although Doriado can attack my life points (LP: 3600 - 1600), Dark Elf can't."

"I end my turn." Scorpio said.

"I set a monster in defense mode." Kylie said. "Go."

"Doriado (ATK: 1600 - 200), attack." Scorpio said, as his mistress destroyed Kylie's defense. "Go."

"I pass." Kylie said.

"Doriado (ATK: 1400 - 200), attack her directly!" Scorpio said. Kylie stumbled back as Scorpio's monster struck her (LP: 2000 - 1200). "Go."

"I play Polymerization!" Kylie said. "I fuse two monsters from my hand: Curse of Dragon and Gaia the Fierce Knight to summon Gaia the Dragon Champion (ATK: 2600)! Next, I remove Curse of Dragon and Mirage Dragon from my graveyard from play to special summon Chaos Emperor Dragon- Envoy of the End (ATK: 3000)!" Scorpio gasped, then chuckled, as two monsters appeared on the field. The first was a warrior in a black bodysuit, blue armor, and carrying two red lances riding a flying golden dragon. The second was a large green dragon with a long red mane and silver armor.

"Ha! Too bad your trap prevents them from attacking." Scorpio smiled.

"Wrong! I activate Royal Decree. Now, all other traps on the field are negated, including my Gravity Bind." Kylie said.

"Oh no!!" Scorpio gasped.

"Gaia the Dragon Champion, attack Doriado and end this duel!!" Kylie commanded. Scorpio gasped as his elemental mistress was blown away, depleting his life points.

"No!" Scorpio exclaimed. "It's not fair! I should've won."

"Too bad you lost." Kylie said. "Now, per our deal, hand over your three Locator Cards. Lucky for you, I'll let you keep your rarest card."

"I don't think so." Scorpio said. He pushed Kylie to the ground, scattering her cards. He quickly scooped them up and ran out of the room. She rushed after him, but found the door to be locked.

"Great... He has my deck..."

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Here's the plan." CJ said. "Yugi, you and Tea check the northern half of Battle City. I'll check the southern half."

"Okay." Yugi said. "I'll see you in a little while."

_**Back in the warehouse...**_

Scorpio ran through the warehouse, when he was suddenly knocked down by another Neo Ghoul. He looked up and gasped.

"B-Bandit Keith..."

"That was out of line." Keith said. "You lost the duel. Honor your deal."

"But... since she won, she's free to go." Scorpio said.

"I didn't tell you to kidnap her." Keith said.

"But she's bait for CJ." Scorpio said.

"I still have a Wicked god." Keith said. "That's my bait."

"But-"

"If you aren't going to listen, we'll duel." Keith said. "I win, you give Kylie her deck back and let her go. You win, then you can keep her deck, take over the Neo Ghouls and do with her what you wish."

"I summon Blue Thunder T-45 (ATK: 1700)." Keith said, summoning a silver spaceship with a blue windshield. "Next, I lay a card face down and end my turn."

"I discard Thunder Dragon to add two more to my hand." Scorpio said. "Next, I play Polymerization to fuse the two Thunder Dragons together to make Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon (ATK: 2800)." Keith chuckled as a two-headed red dragon appeared on Scorpio's field.

"You think using the girl's deck can help you win?" He asked. "Dumb fool. You're doomed."

"Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, attack Blue Thunder T-45!" Scorpio said. Keith stood there unfazed as his machine exploded (LP: 4000 - 1100). "Go."

"I set one monster in defense mode." Keith said. "Go."

"Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, attack his defense." Keith smirked and did nothing as his defense was destroyed. "Go."

"I activate Zera Ritual and sacrifice two monsters from my hand to summon Zera the Mant (ATK: 2800)!" Keith said, summoning a large blue fiend in a purple cape. "Next, I lay a card face down and since my hand is empty, I draw three new cards. Go."

"I place two cards face down and lay a monster in defense mode." Scorpio said. "Go."

"Zera, attack his defense!!" Keith said, as his fiend wiped out Scorpio's defense monster. "Go."

"I lay another monster in defense mode." Scorpio said. "Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, attack Zera!!" Keith smirked as both monsters were destroyed. "Go."

"I pass." Keith said. "Go."

"I flip summon Spirit Ryu (ATK: 1000)." Scorpio said, summoning a blue dragon with a semi-transparent body. "Next, I attack you directly and activate Stamping Destruction to destroy one of your facedowns and inflict 500 points of damage to you." Keith stood there, with his finger on his next card, smirking. He smiled as his life points were hit (LP: 2900 - 1500) and a mechanism under his sleeve switched his top card with one under his sleeve.

"My move." Keith said, snapping the top card off of his deck. He smiled as a ten-pointed star appeared in a black vortex in front of him. Two arms, two legs and a head emerged from it. Scorpio's eyes widened.

"Th-that can't b-be!" He gasped.

"Never mess with your boss." Keith said. "Exodia, Obliterate!!"

"But, I-"

"You lost." Keith said, kicking Scorpio to the ground. "Now, give me the deck." He reached down and yanked Kylie's deck out of Scorpio's Duel Disk. He walked over to the room where Kylie was being held. He threw the deck into the room, scattering the cards all over the floor. He then tossed in three Locator Cards.

"My cards!" Kylie exclaimed, grabbing her deck.

"Get out of here." Keith said. "You're free to go." Kylie scooped up all her cards and ran out of the room.

_**Later...**_

_Great... I'm lost in some weird part of Domino City, I have no idea where CJ is, and for all I know, some Neo Ghoul creep is tracking me..._ Kylie thought. _This sucks..._


	13. Millennium Mistress

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN: Millennium Mistress**

CJ wandered through Battle City, anxiously searching for Kylie. It was then that a familiar voice caught his attention.

"Hey, CJ. You're here too?" CJ looked up and saw a blond-haired, green-eyed girl about the age of 13 or 14. She wore a white t-shirt, pink jacket and jean skirt, and her hair was tied into pigtails. CJ looked at her and smirked.

"Yeah, I'm here, Becca." He said.

"Cool." Rebecca said. "In that case, let's duel."

"You're on." CJ said. He then noticed Rebecca's two locator cards. "One Locator Card. And, if you win, you get this." CJ held up his Blue Eyes White Dragon. Rebecca smiled when she saw the tape around it.

"I can't believe you still have my card." Rebecca said.

"Of course I have it." CJ said. "You did give it to me as a symbol of our friendship, Becca. Now, let's duel!!"

"I lay two cards face down and summon Senju of the Thousand Hands (ATK: 1400)." Rebecca said, summoning a rock-like humanoid creature with one thousand hands. "Your move."

"I summon Queen's Knight (ATK: 1500)." CJ said, summoning a blond haired, blue eyed female knight in red armor decorated to look similar to a playing card. "Queen's Knight, attack Senju!" Rebecca watched as CJ's knight sliced her monster in half (LP: 4000 - 100). "Go."

"I summon Barrier Statue of the Drought (DEF: 1000)." Rebecca said, summoning a statue of a rock beast. "Now, no monsters can be special summoned except for earth monsters. Go."

"Queen's Knight! Attack her statue!" CJ said. Then, a blond haired male knight in orange and gold armor appeared on the field, followed by a blond haired male knight in blue armor. "I summon King's Knight (ATK: 1600). And since he's on the field with Queen's Knight, I can special summon Jack's Knight (ATK: 1900). King's Knight! Jack's Knight! Attack her directly!!" Rebecca stumbled back as both knights struck her with their swords (LP: 3900 - 3500). "Next, I end my turn by laying a card face down."

"I activate Swords of Revealing Light!" Rebecca said, as a group of shining swords pierced CJ's field, immobilizing his monsters. "Next, I lay a monster in defense mode. Go."

"I pass." CJ said, as some of Rebecca's swords vanished.

"I sacrifice my defense to summon Millennium Shield (DEF: 3000)." Rebecca said, summoning a red shield with gold edges and the Millennium symbol on it. "Go."

"I lay a card face down and summon a defense monster." CJ said. "Go." Then, some more swords vanished.

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Rebecca said. "Go."

"I activate Pot of Greed." CJ said, drawing two cards. "Next, I activate Advanced Ritual Art! First, I choose a ritual monster from my hand, then I sacrifice monsters from my deck equal to the ritual monster's level." CJ discarded one card from his deck. "Finally, I can summon the monster, so let's go, Black Luster Soldier (ATK: 3000)!" Rebecca gasped as a man in dark blue armor appeared on CJ's field. He had a long curved sword and long red hair that flowed down in a ponytail. "Go." Then, the rest of Rebecca's swords vanish.

"My Swords of Revealing Light have worn off, but my Shield still has enough defense to stand up to any of your monsters, so I'll lay one card face down." Rebecca said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down and send Black Luster Soldier to attack your defense!" Rebecca stood there unfazed as her defense was destroyed. "Go."

"I summon another defense." Rebecca said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down." CJ said. "Black Luster Soldier, destroy her defense! Go."

"I lay a card face down." Rebecca said. "Go."

"I pass." CJ said.

"I pass too." Rebecca said.

"I activate Rain of Mercy, increasing both our life points by 1000." CJ said (LP: 5000).

"Thanks." Rebecca said (LP: 1400).

"Go." CJ said.

"Wow, this duel is going nowhere, huh?" Rebecca said. "You wanna just call it a day?"

"Nice try, Becca." CJ said. "Don't you want your dragon?"

"Here's a crazy idea." Rebecca said. "Just give me the dragon, and we'll keep our Locator Cards."

"I respect your effort, Bec, but I don't think so." CJ said.

"All right, keep the dragon, take my Locator Card, and take me to a movie and a nice restaurant." Rebecca laughed.

"That's tempting, but I have a girlfriend." CJ said.

"I didn't mean like a date." Rebecca said. CJ raised an eyebrow and looked at her. "Okay, I did."

"Like I said, I have a girlfriend." CJ said.

"Fine, we'll keep dueling." Rebecca said, drawing a card. "I summon a monster in defense mode. Go."

"I play Shield Crush to destroy your Millennium Shield." CJ said. "Next, Black Luster Soldier! Attack that defense! Now, I'm sorry to do this, but..."

"Uh oh..."

"Jack's Knight, attack Rebecca's life points!" Rebecca fell onto her back as Jack's Knight struck her (LP: 0). CJ walked over, held out his hand, and helped Rebecca up.

"A deal's a deal." Rebecca said, holding out her Locator Card and her rarest card. CJ took the Locator Card but pushed back the other.

"Keep that." CJ said. "I already have your Blue Eyes White Dragon. I don't need another card. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get going."

"In a hurry?" Rebecca asked.

"Yeah. I need to find Kylie, my girlfriend. She disappeared a little while ago, and I've been searching for her." CJ said.

"Can I help?" Rebecca asked.

"If you really want to." CJ said.

"Of course I want to." Rebecca said. "You're my best friend."

_**Later...**_

Yugi and Tea walked out of a restaurant in the eastern part of Domino City.

"Hey guys." The two turned around and saw CJ and Rebecca.

"Hey, CJ." Yugi said. "Hi, Rebecca."

"She wants to help find Kylie." CJ said. Yugi looked puzzled. "I ran into her about an hour ago, we dueled, and the situation came up. She offered to help."

"Cool." Yugi said.

"I assume you haven't found Kylie." CJ said.

"No." Yugi said.

"She wasn't in the restaurant I guess." CJ said, laughing.

"I was just treating Tea to lunch." Yugi said, nervous.

"Don't worry about it, dude." CJ said. "Kylie can take care of herself. It won't hurt if we aren't looking for her constantly."

"Thanks." Yugi said.

_**Meanwhile...**_

Kylie wandered along the docks.

_Hopefully, if I follow the docks, I'll find CJ..._ She thought.

_**Back in eastern Domino...**_

"So, what's the plan?" Yugi asked.

"You guys take the north, Rebecca and I will take the south." CJ said. "Once you're done there, head back here and we'll take the west." Rebecca checked her watch.

"Oh man!"

"Something wrong?" CJ asked.

"Yeah." Rebecca said. "I just remembered I was supposed to meet my grandpa in a few minutes for lunch."

"That's fine." CJ said. "Maybe we'll see you in the finals."

"Yeah, maybe." Rebecca said. "See ya." She then ran off.

"Okay, Yugi." CJ said, turning to face Yugi. "Let's meet up again in a few hours at Clock Tower Square."

"Okay." Yugi said.

_**Near the docks...**_

Kylie walked along the docks and frowned as she reached the end of a long alley.

"Dead end..." She said. _Man, this is bad... I've got to find CJ, and fast!_


	14. The Magician's Trap

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN: The Magician's Trap**

Yugi and Tea walked through Battle City.

"I hope we find Kylie soon." Tea said.

"Me too." Yugi said. Suddenly, the ground collapsed underneath them. They soon fell themselves in a small stage-like rom. In the center of the room was a small round pit with the Millennium symbol in its center. Tea fell into a small cage and Yugi fell into the pit. Shackles then locked around his ankles, and a blue disk emerged from the wall of the pit.

"Yugi! Look out!" Tea exclaimed.

"Oh no! A dark energy disk! That can only mean-!" A creepy laughter then filled the room. From behind a curtain nearby emerged a familiar Neo Ghoul. He wore a red suit, red top hat, and striped green and yellow mask.

"Hello, Yugi... Prepare for another Shadow Game!" He said.

"Arkana!!" Yugi said. "What does Bandit Keith want with me?"

"Nothing." Arkana said. "This is for me... When I'm done with you, I'll be the Master of Magicians!!"

"Fine." Yugi said. "2 Locator Cards."

"Deal." Arkana said. "And, I'll begin by playing the field spell Yami! Now, all my spellcasters gain 200 attack and defense points. Next, I pay half my life points (LP: 4000 - 2000) to activate Dark Magic Curtain!! So, now I can special summon Dark Magician (ATK: 2700)!!" Yugi gasped as the white haired mage in red armor and robe appeared on the field. "Go."

"I summon Yellow Gadget (ATK: 1200)." Yugi said, summoning a monster composed of yellow machine parts and silver gears. "And then I add Green Gadget to my hand."

"How pathetic... That can't stop my Dark Magician." Arkana said.

"Then I lay two cards face down and equip Yellow Gadget with Mage Power! Now, my gadget gains 500 attack and defense for each spell and trap on my field (ATK: 2700). Next, I activate Card of Sanctity, so we each draw until we have six cards in our hands." Yugi drew four cards and Arkana drew two. "Next, I lay one more card face down, increasing my Gadget's power (ATK: 3200). Yellow Gadget, attack Dark Magician!!" Arkana gasped in shock as his magician was destroyed (LP: 2000 - 500).

"No big deal... I still have two more magicians in my deck waiting to destroy you." Arkana said.

"I end my turn." Yugi said. "Your move."

"I summon Gambler of Legend (ATK: 700)." Arkana said, summoning a blond-haired man in a Wild West style outfit. "Next, I activate Magical Dimension and sacrifice my Gambler to summon Chaos Command Magician (ATK: 2600)." A new monster then appeared on Arkana's field. This one resembled the Dark Magician, but it wore green armor. "Now thanks to Magical Dimension, I can destroy one monster on the field, so say goodbye to Yellow Gadget. Now, Chaos Command, attack Yugi directly!"

"I activate Spellbinding Circle!" Yugi said. "Now, your Chaos Command is weakened (ATK: 2600 - 700) and it can't attack."

"I end my turn." Arkana said.

"I summon a monster in defense mode and activate Exchange!" Yugi said. "Now, we get to look at each other's hand and take any card we want. So show me your hand, Arkana." Both players revealed their hand.

"Go, Yugi! Beat this freak!!" Tea cheered.

_Oh! I better take that monster! If he sacrifices that, he could destroy my Spellbinding Circle!_ Yugi thought, taking one of Arkana's cards.

"That one looks good." Arkana said, taking one of Yugi's cards.

"Your move." Yugi said.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Master Keith, Arkana is currently dueling Yugi Moto." Bandit Keith sat in his base, talking with a Neo Ghoul.

"What? Why?" Keith asked.

"I do not know, sir." The Ghoul said.

"Contact that fool and find out." Keith said.

"Yes, sir." The Ghoul said.

_**Back with Yugi...**_

"I summon Green Gadget (ATK: 1400)." Arkana said, summoning a green version of Yugi's Yellow Gadget. "Green Gadget, attack Yugi's defense!" Yugi smirked as a white marshmallow monster appeared on his field.

"You attacked Marshmallon (DEF: 500)!" Yugi said. "First of all, he can't be destroyed in battle! Second, since you attacked him while he was face down, you take 1000 points of damage!" Arkana gasped as Marshmallon leaped into the air and bit down on his arm (LP: 1500 - 1000).

"I end my turn." Arkana said.

"You're down to your last 500 life points, Arkana." Yugi said. "Maybe you shouldn't have challenged me."

_Fool... If you knew what was waiting. My Dark Magician isn't my strongest monster, and you'll find that out soon enough._ Arkana thought.

"I set a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon Sage of Stillness (ATK: 1600)." Arkana said, summoning a bearded old man in a blue robe. "Attack his defense!" Yugi watched as a red monster similar to Green Gadget and Yellow Gadget was destroyed. "Go."

"I lay one card face down and lay a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "Go."

"I sacrifice Chaos Command and Green Gadget to summon another Dark Magician (ATK: 2700)!" Arkana said, summoning another magician. "Next, I activate the spell card, Dark Magic Attack! Now, Dark Magician, use your Dark Magic Attack to destroy all of Yugi's spells and traps!!" Yugi gasped as his spells and traps were destroyed, one of which showed a reflective barrier.

"No! My Mirror Force!!" Yugi exclaimed.

"Now, prepare for my ultimate magician... Dark Magician, transform!!" Arkana said. Dark Magician's armor then became crimson in color, and he gained a long dark purple cape as well as a purple scepter. "Come forth, Dark Eradicator Warlock (ATK: 2700)!!"

"What on Earth is that?!" Tea exclaimed.

"Whoa! I've never seen that monster!" Yugi said.

"I told you, Yugi... I am the MASTER OF MAGICIANS!!" Arkana exclaimed. "Dark Eradicator Warlock, attack that defense!!" Yugi watched as his defense was obliterated by a blast of magic energy. "Go."

_Yikes... Good thing I have Marshmallon on my field._ Yugi said. He then drew a card. "I activate Gold Sarcophagus! Now, I remove one of my cards from play. And now, if you play that same card, your card is destroyed." Yugi thumbed through his deck, grabbed a card and slipped it into his back pocket. _This'll stop him..._ "I end my turn."

_**Meanwhile...**_

CJ wandered through Battle City, anxiously searching for Kylie.

_Come on, Kylie... Where are you?_ He thought.

_**In southern Battle City...**_

Kylie walked along the docks, and again she walked into a long alley.

_Another dead end? What's going on?_ She wondered. Meanwhile, a pair of men stood atop a nearby building, watching her.

"Perfect... She is trapped in our maze." One said.

"For her, these are not good days." The other said.

"She will never make it out." The first said.

"Trapped inside, she will pout." The second said.

_**Back in the duel...**_

"I summon Gemini Elf (ATK: 2100)." Arkana said, summoning a pair of elves. The first had red hair and wore a purple dress. The second was blond and wore a blue dress. "As long as my Warlock is on the field, my spellcaster force will keep increasing, and there's nothing you can do!!" Arkana laughed.

_He's right... I have to destroy that monster... But how?_ Yugi wondered.

"Your move, Yugi." Arkana said.

_I need to beat that Warlock, and fast!!_ Yugi thought, drawing a card. "I lay a card face down. Go."

"I pass." Arkana said, smiling.

"I reveal Stronghold the Moving Fortress!" Yugi said, as a large machine appeared on his field. It had three gear shaped holes in it, each labeled with a different letter: a green "G", a red "R" and a yellow "Y". "This trap is also a monster, with 2000 defense points, adding to my defensive power."

"Big deal... I'll still destroy it." Arkana said.

"I end my turn." Yugi said.

"Dark Eradicator Warlock, destroy Stronghold!!" Arkana said. "Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior (ATK: 1800)." Arkana said, summoning a magician in red armor, with a sword and red shield. Then, a blue orb on the shiel lit up. "And, since I just summoned him, he gains a spell counter and 300 attack points (ATK: 2100). Warlock, attack Yugi's defense!" Yugi watched as his Kuriboh was destroyed. "Go."

"I activate Black Luster Ritual!!" Yugi said. "I sacrifice Magician of Black Chaos from my hand to summon Black Luster Soldier (ATK: 3000)!" Arkana gasped as a new monster appeared on the field. It wore blue armor with gold edges and had red hair that was in a ponytail. "Black Luster Soldier, attack Dark Eradicator Warlock!" Arkana gasped as his warlock was destroyed (LP: 500 - 300). "Go."

"I lay a monster in defense mode." Arkana said. "Go."

"I sacrifice Marshmallon to summon Summoned Skull (ATK: 2700)." Yugi said, summoning a skull monster. "Black Luster Soldier! Summoned Skull! Attack! Go."

"I summon another defense." Arkana said. "Go."

"Attack!" Yugi smiled as two more of Arkana's monsters were destroyed. "Go."

"Another defense." Arkana said. "Go."

"Attack!" Yugi commanded. Arkana watched as his final two monsters were destroyed. "It's over, Arkana. Nothing you can do will save you... I've won." Arkana looked over his hand and gasped.

"No... I... I c-can't play... anything..." Arkana said. He frowned and placed his hand over his deck (LP: 0). "I... I surrender." Yugi watched in horror as the Dark Energy Disk struck Arkana and he vanished in a ray of darkness. Tea's cage opened and Yugi's shackles then vanished.

"Come on, Tea. Let's see if we can find Kylie." Yugi said.


	15. A Duel With Destiny

**CHAPTER FIFTEEN: Duel With Destiny, Part 1**

CJ walked down the street. He frowned as he came to the end of an alley.

"Whoops... Wrong way." He said. _Man, at this rate, I may never find Kylie!_

_**Meanwhile...**_

Kylie walked around a corner, and saw a graveyard.

_Maybe if I take that, I can find CJ faster._ She thought, walking into the graveyard. She smirked as she turned a corner and saw a familiar brown-eyed, white-haired boy in a blue-and-white-striped shirt and blue jeans.

"Hey, Bakura." She said, catching the boy's attention.

"Hello, Kylie." The boy said with a British accent. "I take it you're in the tournament, too, correct?"

"Yup." Kylie said.

"So, would you like to duel?" Bakura asked.

"That depends: How many Locator Cards do you have?" Kylie asked.

"Four." Bakura said. Kylie smiled and held up her four.

"Me too." Kylie said. "So this'll be an all-or-nothing duel. Winner advances to the finals, loser goes home."

"Deal." Bakura said. "But even your dragons have nothing on my deck. Now..."

"LET'S DUEL!"

"I discard Thunder Dragon to add two more to my hand." Kylie said. "Next, I summon Mirage Dragon (ATK: 1600) and lay two cards face down." Then, a golden dragon with blue-green hair appeared on Kylie's field. "Go."

"I summon Zolga (ATK: 1700)." Bakura said, summoning a silver machine-like monster in a long purple robe. "Next, I activate Chain Energy!"

"I reveal my trap: Blasting Fuse! Since all the cards in the field are in the same spot on our Duel Disks, I can activate this card to destroy them all. Sure, I'll destroy my dragon, but it's a small sacrifice to destroy your two cards." Kylie said.

"I end my turn." Bakura said.

"I lay one card face down and end my turn." Kylie said.

"I summon Dark King of the Abyss (ATK: 1200)!" Bakura said, summoning a skeleton monster with two red eyes, and a third red eye on his forehead. "Next, I lay a card face down and send my Dark King to attack you directly!!" Kylie braced herself as Dark King sliced her with his long skeletal claws (LP: 4000 - 1200). "Go."

"I summon Spear Dragon (ATK: 1900)." Kylie said, summoning a blue dragon with a long snout. "Spear Dragon, attack!!" Bakura watched as Kylie's dragon attacked his Dark King, destroying it (LP: 4000 - 700) before switching to defense mode (DEF: 0). "Go."

"I summon another Dark King of the Abyss (ATK: 1200)." Bakura said, summoning another Dark King. "Attack!" Kylie watched as her monster was destroyed. "Next, I lay a card face down and end my turn."

"I summon Blizzard Dragon (ATK: 1800)." Kylie said, summoning a blue dragon covered in ice crystals. "Attack that Dark King!!" Bakura watched as his second Dark King was obliterated (LP: 3300 - 600). "Go."

"I summon Headless Knight (DEF: 1700)." Bakura said, summoning a headless armored knight. "Go."

"Blizzard Dragon, attack Headless Knight!!" Kylie exclaimed, as her dragon froze and destroyed Bakura's knight. "Go."

_**Meanwhile...**_

CJ walked along the docks. He walked down an alley and saw "KH" scribbled on the wall. _Kylie..._ He thought. _I'm getting closer._

_**Back in the graveyard...**_

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Bakura said. "Go."

"I activate Dragon's Rage!" Kylie said. "Now, when my dragons destroy a defense monster, you'll take damage equal to the difference between my monster's attack points and your monster's defense points. Blizzard Dragon, destroy that defense!" Bakura watched as a man in a purple suit, white top hat and cape was destroyed (LP: 2700 - 1100). "Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Bakura said. "Go."

"Blizzard Dragon, attack that defense!!" Bakura watched as a monster made of various dark parts was destroyed (LP: 1600 - 200). "Go."

"I summon Earthbound Spirit (DEF: 2000)." Bakura said, as a skeletal monster emerged from the ground below him. "Next, I equip him with Dark Energy (DEF: 2300). Go."

"I lay a card face down and end my turn." Kylie said. "Go."

"I sacrifice my spirit to summon Dark Ruler Ha Des (ATK: 2450)!" Bakura said, summoning a fiend in a long blue robe, brown jewel-covered armor, and a brown headdress. "Attack Blizzard Dragon!!" Kylie frowned as her monster was destroyed (LP: 2800 - 850). "Go."

"I lay a monster in defense mode." Kylie said. "Go."

_**Meanwhile...**_

CJ frowned as he reached a brick wall.

"Crap... another dead end." The same two men who were watching Kylie stood nearby watching CJ.

"He is trapped in our maze, unable to win." One said.

"Indeed he is, now let's trap him in." The second said.

_**Back in the graveyard...**_

"Dark Ruler, attack that defense!!" Bakura exclaimed, as his fiend destroyed a red dragon in white armor. "Go."

"I summon another monster in defense mode." Kylie said. "Go."

"I summon the Gross Ghost of Fled Dreams (ATK: 1300)." Bakura said, summoning a purple-haired, skeletal monster with a curved sword and metal shield. "Dark Ruler, attack the defense! Gross Ghost, attack her life points!!" Kylie braced herself as her monster was destroyed and Bakura's ghost slashed at her (LP: 1950 - 1300). "Go."

_This is bad... One more attack and I'm done..._ Kylie thought. _And, I'm not losing. I have a reputation to maintain as Queen of Games!_ She drew a card. "I activate Magical Mallet! I add four cards to my deck, shuffle it, and draw four new cards." Kylie shuffled her deck and drew four new cards. "Next, I lay one card face down and end my turn."

"I sacrifice Gross Ghost for Earl of Demise (ATK: 2000)." Bakura said, summoing a green fiendish man in a red suit. In his hand was a rapier. "Now, it looks like I'll be moving on to the finals. Attack, my two monsters!!"

"I reveal my trap: Gravity Bind!" Kylie said, as a green grid covered the field. "Now, all monsters above level three cannot attack."

"I end my turn." Bakura said.

"I pass." Kylie said.

"As do I." Bakura said.

"I pass again." Kylie said.

"I summon a defense monster." Bakura said. "Go."

"I pass." Kylie said.

"I sacrifice my defense for another Earl of Demise (ATK: 2000)!!" Bakura said. "Now, my army of monsters is nearly unstoppable. All I need to do is destroy Gravity Bind and I'm going to the finals, so I'll end my turn."

"I pass again." Kylie frowned.

_**Meanwhile...**_

CJ ran through the maze near the docks and frowned as he reached another dead end.

_What the heck is going on here? I can't find the stinkin' way out!_ He wondered.

_**Back in the graveyard...**_

"I pass." Bakura said.

"I activate Malice Dispersion and discard a card to destroy all continuous traps on the field. Next, I play Polymerization to fuse the two Thunder Dragons in my hand to summon Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon (ATK: 2800)!" Kylie said, summoning a two-headed red dragon. "Attack Dark Ruler Ha Des!!" Bakura watched as his monster was destroyed (LP: 1400 - 350). "Go."

"I switch my Earls of Demise to defense mode (DEF: 700 [x2]) and lay a monster in defense mode. "Next, I activate Just Desserts to deal you 500 points of damage." Kylie gasped as a translucent arm emerged from Bakura's Duel Disk and grabbed her head, squeezing with painful force (LP: 650 - 500). "Go."

"Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, attack Earl of Demise!" Kylie commanded.

"I reveal Call of the Earthbound! Now, I can choose your attack target, and I choose my defense monster, Fiend Reflection #2 (DEF: 1400)." Bakura said, as a three-eyed red bird with a mirror in place of its stomach was destroyed.

"I end my turn." Kylie said.

"I activate Change of Heart!!" Bakura said. "Now, all I have to do is control that Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon and I'm going to the finals! Prepare to hand over your title!"

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	16. A Duel With Destiny, Part 2

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_Hey, Bakura." She said, catching the boy's attention._

_  
"Hello, Kylie." The boy said with a British accent. "I take it you're in the tournament, too, correct?"_

_  
"Yup." Kylie said._

"_So, would you like to duel?" Bakura asked._

"_That depends: How many Locator Cards do you have?" Kylie asked._

_  
"Four." Bakura said. Kylie smiled and held up her four._

_  
"Me too." Kylie said. "So this'll be an all-or-nothing duel. Winner advances to the finals, loser goes home."_

_  
"Deal." Bakura said. "But even your dragons have nothing on my deck. Now..."_

_  
"LET'S DUEL!"_

_---_

"_I sacrifice my spirit to summon Dark Ruler Ha Des (ATK: 2450)!" Bakura said, summoning a fiend in a long blue robe, brown jewel-covered armor, and a brown headdress. "Attack Blizzard Dragon!!" Kylie frowned as her monster was destroyed (LP: 2800 - 850). "Go."_

"_I lay a monster in defense mode." Kylie said. "Go."_

_---_

"_I activate Malice Dispersion and discard a card to destroy all continuous traps on the field. Next, I play Polymerization to fuse the two Thunder Dragons in my hand to summon Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon (ATK: 2800)!" Kylie said, summoning a two-headed red dragon. "Attack Dark Ruler Ha Des!!" Bakura watched as his monster was destroyed (LP: 1400 - 350). "Go."_

"_I switch my Earls of Demise to defense mode (DEF: 700 [x2]) and lay a monster in defense mode. "Next, I activate Just Desserts to deal you 500 points of damage." Kylie gasped as a translucent arm emerged from Bakura's Duel Disk and grabbed her head, squeezing with painful force (LP: 650 - 500). "Go."_

"_Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, attack Earl of Demise!" Kylie commanded._

_  
"I reveal Call of the Earthbound! Now, I can choose your attack target, and I choose my defense monster, Fiend Reflection #2 (DEF: 1400)." Bakura said, as a three-eyed red bird with a mirror in place of its stomach was destroyed._

"_I end my turn." Kylie said._

"_I activate Change of Heart!!" Bakura said. "Now, all I have to do is control that Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon and I'm going to the finals! Prepare to hand over your title!"_

**CHAPTER SIXTEEN: Duel With Destiny, Part 2**

"I activate Change of Heart!!" Bakura said. "Now, all I have to do is control that Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon and I'm going to the finals! Prepare to hand over your title!"

"Wrong! I activate Magic Jammer!" Kylie said. "I discard a card and negate your spell card!"

"I end my turn." Bakura said.

"Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon!" Kylie said. "Attack Earl of Demise!" Kylie smiled as another one of Bakura's defenses was destroyed. "Go."

"I lay a monster in defense mode, lay a card face down and end my turn." Bakura said.

"Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon! Attack!" Kylie said, wiping out another defense.

_**Meanwhile...**_

_Dang! I need to get out of here!_ Suddenly, the wall near him opened and Yugi walked in.

"Yugi!" CJ exclaimed.

"How did that wall just open?" Yugi wondered.

"Maybe it's not a wall." CJ said. Suddenly, the wall closed.

"Yugi! Are you okay?" Tea shouted from the other side of the wall.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Yugi said. "CJ and I will try to find a way back to you. Just wait there."

"Okay." Tea said.

_**Back in the graveyard...**_

"Go." Kylie said.

"I switch Earl of Demise to attack mode (ATK: 2000)." Bakura said. "Next, I activate Strike Slash and the field spell, Yami! Now, my Earl gains 900 points, which is just enough to destroy your monster (ATK: 2900). Now, Earl of Demise, attack!" Kylie gasped as her fusion monster was destroyed (LP: 150 - 100).

_Oh man!! I need to draw a winning card now! I'm down to 50 life points! If I don't draw something good now, I lose my title!_ Kylie thought, reaching for her deck. "I activate Gravekeeper's Servant and lay a card face down. Now, when you attack, you must discard a card from the top of your deck. Go."

"I play Upstart Goblin to draw another card." Bakura said. "However, the downside to this is that you gain 1000 life points." Kylie breathed a sigh of relief as a blue aura surrounded her (LP: 1050). "Earl of Demise, destroy her defense!" Kylie frowned as her only defense was destroyed. "Go."

_Oh no... I'm doomed... I need to draw a winning card... Now!!_ Kylie drew a card and smiled. _That's it!!_ "I activate my face down card, Polymerization!! I fuse every card in my hand together... Spirit Ryu... Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV 6... Baby Dragon... Hyozanryu... and Chaos Emperor Dragon- Envoy of the End... Now, I summon my ultimate monster..." Kylie smiled as her five cards disappeared into a vortex. From it emerged a large golden dragon with five heads: one of fire, one of a sea serpent, one tan colored head covered in spikes, one metallic head, and a head of darkness. "Meet the Mythic Five-Headed Dragon (ATK: 5000)!!"

"Oh no! Not that!" Bakura gasped.

"Oh yeah! Five Headed Dragon! Attack Earl of Demise and end this!!" Bakura watched as the five heads launched a group of attacks, wiping out his fiend (LP: 0).

"Wow... Nice duel, Kylie." Bakura said. "Here are my four Locator Cards and my rarest card... Dark Ruler Ha Des."

"The Locator Cards are enough." Kylie said.

"So tell me, how did you get such a powerful card like the Five-Headed Dragon?" Bakura asked.

"CJ gave it to me for my 16th birthday." Kylie said.

"Wow... That's pretty cool." Bakura said. "Well, good luck in the finals."

"Thanks." Kylie said, as Bakura walked away. Kylie then stacked her Locator Cards and watched as a map of Battle City appeared on them. "Awesome... Battle City finals... Here I come."

_**Meanwhile, in KaibaCorp...**_

"Big Brother, we have our next finalist." Mokuba said.

"Is it Yugi?" Kaiba asked.

"No. It's Kylie." Mokuba said.

"Of course." Kaiba said.

_**On the west side of Battle City...**_

Joey (LP: 1750) stood dueling Mai (LP: 3800). He had two face down cards while she has two face down cards and a group of three winged women in gold armor (ATK: 1950).

"Make your move, Joey." Mai said. "And see if you can beat my Harpie Sisters."

"Come on, man!" Tristan cheered. "You can do this!"

"Go, Big Brother!" Serenity said. "You can win! I know you can, Joey!"

"I play Lightning Vortex and discard a card to destroy all your face up monsters." Joey said. Mai watched in shoch as her Harpies were destroyed. "Next, I summon Armored Lizard (ATK: 1500)! Armored Lizard, attack Mai directly!!" Mai stumbled as Joey's lizard slashed her (LP: 3800 - 1500). "Go."

"I summon Harpie Lady 1 (ATK: 1300) and play the field spell, Rising Air Current!" Mai said, summoing a red-haired woman with green wings in a purple bodysuit. "Now, my field spell boosts my monster's power (ATK: 1800). Harpie Lady 1, attack Armored Lizard!!" Joey gasped as his lizard was destroyed (LP: 1750 - 300). "Go."

"I summon Baby Dragon (ATK: 1700) and activate Fissure and Card Destruction!" Joey said. "First, Fissure destroys your Harpie Lady 1. Next, Card Destruction forces us to discard our hands and draw the same number of cards we discarded. Now, Baby Dragon, attack Mai directly!!"

"I reveal Call of the Haunted to bring back Harpie Lady 3 (ATK: 1800)." Mai said. "Harpie, counter-attack!"

"I activate the quick play spell card, Rush Recklessly, giving Baby Dragon another 700 atack points (ATK: 2400). Baby Dragon, counter-attack!!" Mai gasped as her Harpie was destroyed (LP: 2300 - 800).

"I end my turn." Joey said, as Baby Dragon's power boost ended (ATK: 1700).

"I play Reload to shuffle my hand back into my deck and draw a new one." Mai said. "Next, I play Card Destruction, so we discard our hands and draw new ones. Finally, I summon Harpie's Brother (ATK: 2300) and attack your dragon!!" Mai smiled as a man with red wings garbed in a brown bodysuit appeared on the field. Joey watched as the winged man clawed through Baby Dragon (LP: 1450 - 600). "Go."

"I activate Dust Tornado to destroy Rising Air Current!" Joey said, as Harpie's Brother was weakened (ATK: 1800). "Next, I summon Hayabusa Knight (ATK: 1000) and equip him with Lightning Blade (ATK: 1800)." Mai watched as a purple bird in a green cape and silver armor appeared on the field. "Now, I end my turn with a facedown card."

"I summon Sonic Shooter (ATK: 1300)." Mai said, summoning a silver humanoid-like bird. "Harpie's Brother, attack Hayabusa Knight!!"

"I activate my trap: Magic Arm Shield!! Now, I'll block your Harpie's attack with your Shooter!" Mai gasped as her Sonic Shooter was destroyed (LP: 1500 - 500).

"I end my turn." Mai said.

"I summon Rocket Warrior (ATK: 1500)." Joey said, summoing a warrior in green rocket-like armor. "Now, I use the power of his invicible mode to weaken Harpie's Brother!" The armor closed around the warrior, creating a rocket, which shot at Harpie's Brother, weakening it (ATK: 1800 - 500). "Hayabusa Knight, destroy Harpie's Brother!!" Mai watched as her monster was destroyed and her life points dropped (LP: 1000 - 500). "Go."

"I summon a defense monster and end my turn." Mai said.

"Hayabusa Knight, attack!" Mai watched as another Harpie Lady was destroyed. "Rocket Warrior, attack her directly!" Mai fell to her knees as Joey's Rocket Warrior struck her (LP: 0).

"Here, Joey... Three of my Locator Cards..." Mai said. "Along with my Harpie Lady."

"Nah, keep that." Joey said. "You'll need that."

"Thank you, and good luck in the finals." Mai said.

"Hey, don't sweat it." Joey said. "You're a good duelist. You can win more duels and turn those two Locator Cards into eight."

"Thanks, Joey." Mai said.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"Yugi, I think we may be trapped." CJ said.

"So, what do we do?" Yugi asked.

"We keep walking." CJ said. Suddenly, a large brown worm appeared in front of them.

"Look!" Yugi shouted.

"A Dungeon Worm!" CJ said. "I got this." He activated his Duel Disk and placed a card in the monster zone. "I summon Blue Eyes White Dragon. Attack!" The two watched as the worm exploded. They continued on and soon reached an opening in the wall. They smiled.

"We're out!" Yugi exclaimed.

"Not quite... You are still stuck in our maze."

"This is not your best of days." Suddenly, the two men who were watching them dropped down in the entrance of the maze. Both men were bald and wore matching robes: one was orange and the other was green.

"The Paradox Brothers!" Tea gasped, seeing the men.

"Para..." CJ said, looking at the one in orange.

"And Dox." Yugi added, referring to the one in green.

"It is time, now you fools..."

"For you to face us in a duel."

"Fine." CJ said. "But we all wager only 1 Locator Card."

"Indeed. Now..."

"Let us begin!!"


	17. The Labyrinth

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

_Dang! I need to get out of here! Suddenly, the wall near him opened and Yugi walked in._

_  
"Yugi!" CJ exclaimed._

"_How did that wall just open?" Yugi wondered._

_  
"Maybe it's not a wall." CJ said. Suddenly, the wall closed._

_  
"Yugi! Are you okay?" Tea shouted from the other side of the wall._

"_Yeah, I'm fine." Yugi said. "CJ and I will try to find a way back to you. Just wait there." _

_  
"Okay." Tea said._

_---_

"_Yugi, I think we may be trapped." CJ said._

"_So, what do we do?" Yugi asked._

"_We keep walking." CJ said. Suddenly, a large brown worm appeared in front of them._

"_Look!" Yugi shouted._

"_A Dungeon Worm!" CJ said. "I got this." He activated his Duel Disk and placed a card in the monster zone. "I summon Blue Eyes White Dragon. Attack!" The two watched as the worm exploded. They continued on and soon reached an opening in the wall. They smiled._

"_We're out!" Yugi exclaimed._

"_Not quite... You are still stuck in our maze."_

"_This is not your best of days." Suddenly, the two men who were watching them dropped down in the entrance of the maze. Both men were bald and wore matching robes: one was orange and the other was green._

"_The Paradox Brothers!" Tea gasped, seeing the men._

"_Para..." CJ said, looking at the one in orange._

"_And Dox." Yugi added, referring to the one in green._

"_It is time, now you fools..."_

"_For you to face us in a duel."_

"_Fine." CJ said. "But we all wager only 1 Locator Card."_

_  
"Indeed. Now..."_

"_Let us begin!!"_

**CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: The Labyrinth, Part 1**

"Let's duel, Paradox Brothers!" CJ said.

"Yes, let's." Para said. "The turn order shall be..."

"You, my brother, Yugi then me." Dox said.

"Good." CJ said, drawing his sixth card. "I play Pot of Greed to draw two cards. Next, I summon Lord of Dragons (ATK: 1200) and lay two cards face down." A man in golden, dragon-shaped armor in a blue cape appeared on CJ's field. "Go."

"I summon a defense monster and lay two cards face down." Para said. "That's all."

"I summon a defense monster and lay two cards face down as well." Yugi said. "Go."

"I activate Gravekeeper's Servant and summon Jirai Gumo (ATK: 2200)." Dox said, summoning a brown and orange spider. "Now, Jirai Gumo, attack!!" Dox pulled a coin out and flipped it. "Of course, before my spider attacks, I must toss a coin and call it, so I say Heads." He then caught the coin and looked at it. "Heads... Good. Now Jirai Gumo, attack Lord of Dragons!!"

"I reveal Sakuretsu Armor, which destroys your Jirai Gumo!!" Dox gasped as his monster exploded.

"I end my turn." He said.

"I lay another card face down." CJ said. "Next, I discard the top card on my deck due to the effect of your Gravekeeper's Servant so my Lord of Dragons can attack. Lord of D, attack Dox directly!!" Dox stood there strong as Lord of D attacked him (LP: 4000 - 1200). "I end my turn."

"I sacrifice my monster to summon Dungeon Worm (ATK: 1800)!" Para said, summoing the same worm CJ and Yugi encountered in the maze. "Now, attack Lord of D!"

"Reveal Negate Attack!" CJ said. "This'll do just that: negate your attack."

"I end my turn." Para said.

"I lay one card face down." Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon Kabazauls (ATK: 1700)." Dox said, summoning a large red rhino-like monster. "Attack Lord of D!!"

_Come on, Yugi... Save me here..._ CJ thought.

_Sorry CJ..._ Yugi thought, as Kabazauls charged CJ's monster (LP: 4000 - 500).

"I end my turn." Dox said.

"I play the Shallow Grave, allowing us all to summon a monster from our graveyard in defense mode." CJ said. "And that's it for me."

"I summon another defense monster." Para said. "Dungeon Worm, attack CJ's defense!" CJ watched as his Lord of D was destroyed again. "Go."

"I pass." Yugi said.

"I summon Skull Red Bird (ATK: 1550) and reveal Jirai Gumo (ATK: 2200)." Dox said, summoning a large red bird and his spider monster. "Now, my three monsters, attack CJ directly!!"

_With CJ out of the way, we'll be free to wipe out Yugi and claim one of his Egyptian god cards._ Para thought.

"I reveal Mirror Force!!" Yugi exclaimed. "This will save CJ from your attack and wipe out all your attack position monsters!!"

"I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Mirror Force!!" Para exclaimed.

"I play my Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy yours!" CJ said. He breathed a sigh of relief cleared away the Paradox Brothers' attack mode monsters.

"I end my turn." Dox said, frustrated.

"I play Rain of Mercy, giving all of us a life point boost." CJ said, as a light mist covered the field (CJ's LP: 4500) (Yugi's LP: 5000) (Para's LP: 5000) (Dox's LP: 3800). "Go."

"I sacrifice one of my defense monsters to summon Gravi-Crush Dragon (ATK: 2400)." Para said, summoning a large black dragon with large fists where its front claws should've been. "Attack CJ directly!!" Yugi looked at CJ and CJ nodded as the dragon punched him (LP: 4500 - 2400). "Go, Yugi."

"I activate Swords of Revealing Light!" Yugi said, as glowing swords pierced the Paradox Brothers' field. "Now, you guys can't attack for three turns. Your move, Dox."

"I summon a defense monster." Dox said. "Go."

"I pass." CJ said. "Go."

"I activate Heavy Storm!" Para said. "This will wipe out every spell and trap on the field!" Yugi's swords then vanished. "Now, my dragon, attack CJ!"

"Defense monster, defend CJ!" Yugi said. Everyone watched as a white marshmallow monster was revealed. "Meet my Marshmallon (DEF: 500). And, since you attacked him while he was face down, you lose 1000 life points." Para gasped as Marshmallon leaped into the air and bit his arm (LP: 5000 - 1000). "And, on top of all that, he can't be destroyed in battle."

"I end my turn." Para said.

"I lay two cards face down and play Card of Sanctity. Now we all draw until we have six cards in our hands." Yugi said. "And with that, I end my turn."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Dox said. "Go."

"I lay a card face down and use Foolish Burial to send a monster from my deck to the graveyard." CJ said. "Go."

"I summon Jirai Gumo (ATK: 2200)." Para said. "But, since that monster can't be destroyed, and you'll obviously defend CJ, I'll pass."

"I pass." Yugi said.

"I lay two cards face down and summon a monster in defense mode." Dox said. "Go."

"I activate Fusion Gate and Field Barrier!" CJ said. The field then turned into a green grid and a purple vortex appeared behind CJ and Yugi. "Go."

"I summon another Jirai Gumo (ATK: 2200) and end my turn." Para said.

"I pass." Yugi said.

"I summon another defense and end my turn." Dox said. "Go."

_Slow duel..._ CJ thought, drawing a card. "Hey, Yugi... We need to win this! I have to find Kylie, and I'm not in the mood to deal with these two."

"Yeah, and we especially have to beat them before they summon their Gate Guardian." Yugi said.

"I know that, Yugi, but it's easier said than done." CJ said, drawing a card._ And that doesn't help..._

**TO BE CONTINUED...**


	18. The Labyrinth, Part 2

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_The Paradox Brothers!" Tea gasped, seeing the men._

"_Para..." CJ said, looking at the one in orange._

"_And Dox." Yugi added, referring to the one in green._

"_It is time, now you fools..."_

"_For you to face us in a duel."_

"_Fine." CJ said. "But we all wager only 1 Locator Card."_

_---_

"_I summon Skull Red Bird (ATK: 1550) and reveal Jirai Gumo (ATK: 2200)." Dox said, summoning a large red bird and his spider monster. "Now, my three monsters, attack CJ directly!!"_

_With CJ out of the way, we'll be free to wipe out Yugi and claim one of his Egyptian god cards. Para thought._

_  
"I reveal Mirror Force!!" Yugi exclaimed. "This will save CJ from your attack and wipe out all your attack position monsters!!"_

"_I activate Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy Mirror Force!!" Para exclaimed._

_  
"I play my Mystical Space Typhoon to destroy yours!" CJ said. He breathed a sigh of relief cleared away the Paradox Brothers' attack mode monsters._

"_I end my turn." Dox said, frustrated._

_---_

_Slow duel... CJ thought, drawing a card. "Hey, Yugi... We need to win this! I have to find Kylie, and I'm not in the mood to deal with these two."_

"_Yeah, and we especially have to beat them before they summon their Gate Guardian." Yugi said._

_  
"I know that, Yugi, but it's easier said than done." CJ said, drawing a card. And that doesn't help..._

**CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: The Labyrinth, Part 2**

"I lay a card face down and end my turn." CJ said.

"I pass." Para said.

"I pass as well." Yugi said.

"Same here." Dox said, annoyed.

CJ drew a card. _Dang! We're at a stand-still!_ "I pass."

"I lay one card face down." Para said.

"I play Monster Reborn to revive Summoned Skull, then I play Final Ritual of the Ancients and sacrifice Black Luster Soldier from my hand to summon Reshef the Dark Being, and finally... I sacrifice Reshef, my Skull, and Marshmallon to summon Obelisk the Tormentor (ATK: 4000)!!" Yugi said, as the legendary warrior-like Egyptian god card emerged onto the field. "Obelisk, attack Jirai Gumo!!" Para gasped as one of his spiders was destroyed (LP: 4000 - 1800). "Go."

"I pass." Dox said.

"As do I." CJ said.

"I switch my monsters to defense mode (DEF: 1200) (DEF: 100) and activate Destruction of Destiny. I discard the top three cards on my deck, but since I discarded a spell card this way, I lose 1000 life points." Para said (LP: 2200 - 1000). "Go."

"Obelisk, attack Jirai Gumo!!" Yugi said, destroying another of Para's defense. "Go."

"I summon another defense." Dox said. "Go."

"I activate Spell Absorption." CJ said. "Now, when a spell card is activated, I gain 500 life points. Go."

"I summon a defense monster." Para said. "Go."

"Obelisk, attack one of Dox's defense." Yugi commanded, as one of Dox's defenses was destroyed. "Go."

"I sacrifice two monsters to summon Suijin (ATK: 2500)!" Dox said, as a blue creature appeared on his field. It was a face connected to a pair of legs. "Go."

"I play Lightning Vortex and discard a card to destroy all your face-up monsters." CJ said. "And, thanks to Spell Absorption, I gain 500 life points (LP: 2600). Go."

"One monster in defense mode." Para said. "Go."

"Obelisk, attack one of Dox's defenses!" Yugi said, as another defense exploded. "Go."

"Another defense." Dox said. "Go."

"Yugi, we need to find a way to clear the field!" CJ said.

"I know!" Yugi said.

_**Meanwhile...**_

Bakura walked into a crowded area, where a group of eight duelists had just finished dueling. He looked at the winners and smirked.

"Hey, you four! I challenge you to a four-vs-one duel." He said. "When I win, you give me all your Locator Cards."

"What do we get if we beat you, which we obviously will?" One of the duelists asked.

"My entire dueling deck." Bakura said. The four huddled up and began talking amongst each other.

"This guy's dueling us four on one." One said. "We can easily win this, and we each get at least ten cards. Let's do it." They turned to Bakura.

"You're on!" Bakura smiled, and they all drew five cards.

_**Back at the docks...**_

"I summon Big Shield Gardna (DEF: 2600)." CJ said, summoning a black-haired warrior carrying a large shield. "Go."

"I sacrifice two of my monsters to summon Sanga of the Thunder (ATK: 2600)." Para said, summoning a floating gold torso. It had red shoulders and was surrounded by lightning. "Go."

"Obelisk, attack Sanga!" Yugi said.

"I activate Sanga's ability, reducing Obelisk's attack points to zero. Sanga, counter-attack!" Yugi gasped as Obelisk was destroyed (LP: 5000 - 2600). "Go."

"I lay a card face down and summon a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "Go."

"I pass." Dox said.

"I pass as well." CJ said.

"Sanga, attack Yugi's defense!!" Para commanded. Yugi watched as his Kuriboh was destroyed. "Go."

"I play Black Magic Ritual! I sacrifice Slifer the Sky Dragon from my hand to summon Magician of Black Chaos (ATK: 2800)." Yugi said, summoning a magician in a dark blue bodysuit with red markings. "Attack Sanga!" Para watched as his monster was destroyed (LP: 1100 - 200). "Go."

"I summon another defense." Dox said. "Go."

"I summon Queen's Knight (ATK: 1500)." CJ said, summoning a blond female knight in red armor that bore designs of hearts, diamonds, spades and clubs. "Attack Para's defense!" He smiled as Para's only defense was destroyed. "Go."

"I summon a defense." Para said. "Go."

"Magician, attack Dox's defense!" Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon a defense and end my turn." Dox said.

"I lay a card face down." CJ said. "Queen's Knight, attack Para's defense!! Go."

"I summon another defense." Para said. "Go."

"Magician of Black Chaos, attack!" Para watched as his defense was destroyed. "Go."

"Another defense." Dox said. "Go."

"Queen's Knight, attack Dox's defense!" CJ said. "Go."

"Another defense." Para said. "Go."

"I summon Red Gadget (ATK: 1300) and add Yellow Gadget to my hand." Yugi said, summoning a red gear monster. "Red Gadget, attack his defense! Magician of Black Chaos, direct attack!" Para fell to his knees (LP: 0) in defeat. "Go."

"A defense." Dox said.

"Giant Trunade." CJ said. "Next, I activate Spell Absorprtion, Fusion Gate (LP: 3100), Field Barrier (LP: 3600) and Premature Burial (LP: 3300) to revive Jack's Knight (ATK: 1900)." A male knight in blue armor similar to Queen's Knight appeared on the field. "Queen's Knight and Jack's Knight, destroy two of his defenses! Go, Yugi."

"Red Gadget, destroy the last defense! Magician, direct attack!" Yugi said, as his monsters attacked Dox (LP: 3800 - 2800). "Next, I summon Yellow Gadget (ATK: 1200)." A yellow version of his Red Gadget appeared on the field. "End this duel!" Dox crumpled as his life points were depleted.

_**Meanwhile...**_

Bakura (LP: 350) stood face-to-face with his four opponents (LP: 2800) (LP: 2400) (LP: 2900) (LP: 3150). He had two face downs on his field, while they each had three face downs and four monsters.

"Just give up!" One of the boys said. "We've beat every monster you have. You've got two cards on the field, two in your hand, and none left on your deck."

"I reveal my trap: Just Desserts!" Bakura said. "Now, you each take 500 points of damage for every monster on your field." Four fiendish translucent hands then emerged from the ground and squeezed Bakura's opponents (LP: 800) (LP: 400) (LP: 900) (LP: 1150). "Next, I play Raigeki and reveal Skull Invitation!! Now, not only are all your monsters destroyed, but you'll all take 300 points of damage for each monster you lose." The four duelists gasped as their monsters exploded and the resulting explosion knocked them to the ground (LP: 0 [x4]).

"N-No way!!" One duelists exclaimed.

"He beat them all!" Gasped a spectator.

"All at once, too!" Said another.

"I-Impossible!" Another duelist said. "You must've cheated!"

"No. I'm just that good." Bakura said. "Now, since you lost, please hand over your Locator Cards." Bakura smiled as the four duelists handed over their Locator Cards and rarest cards.

_**Back in the labyrinth...**_

"We won, so hand over your Locator Cards." CJ said. Para and Dox each tossed a Locator Card to the ground.

"And your rarest cards." Yugi added.

"Here." Para said. "Sanga of the Thunder." CJ smiled and took the first Gate Guardian piece.

"And here's my Suijin." Dox said, as Yugi took the card. Yugi smiled and handed it to CJ.

"Take them both." Yugi said. "I don't need them."

"If you're going to take those both, then here... Take Kazejin and Gate Guardian." Dox said.

"You're being nice for a pair of Neo Ghouls." CJ said.

"Neo what?" Para asked.

"Wait... You're not with Bandit Keith?" Yugi asked.

"Bandit Keith is a fool." Para said.

"We are simply here to duel." Dox said. CJ took Sanga and Gate Guardian and smiled.

"Perfect... We're going to the finals, Yug." CJ said. They stacked their Locator Cards and looked at the map of Battle City.

"Yeah, and it looks like they're at KaibaCorp Stadium." Yugi said.

"Then, let's go... to KaibaCorp Stadium." CJ said. "With any luck, Kylie will be there as well."


	19. Let The Finals Begin!

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

_A brown-haired, blue-eyed boy in a light brown suit about the age of 21 sat in an office in a tall building in downtown Domino City, California. In front of him was a computer screen that showed him the legendary Egyptian god cards. He was Seto Kaiba, president of KaibaCorp. On a TV nearby was the duel between Yugi and Kylie. Kaiba gasped as three new monsters appeared on the computer screen. They resembled the Egyptian gods, but they were darker and skeletal. Kaiba looked at them and smiled._

_  
"The Wicked gods?" Kaiba wondered, looking at the text below the pictures. "These look powerful... With these, I could beat Yugi. But, how will I get ahold of them... Wait! I've got it. Battle World! Of course, I'll have to invite Yugi, so I can win his god cards. And, CJ will have to come too. I'm sure he knows the location of these Wicked gods, being the game's current designer. And, I'll invite some other strong duelists, since that'll attract the Rare Hunters, since they may have the cards. But, who else?" Kaiba's attention was then grabbed by the TV, where he saw Kylie's last move._

"_Five Headed Mythic Dragon, attack Yugi directly and end this duel!!" Kaiba gasped as he watched the Five Headed Dragon wipe out Yugi (LP: 0)._

_  
"Impossible! Someone beat Yugi!" Kaiba gasped. She's coming to the tournament too! Especially with that Five Headed Dragon._

_---_

"_Sir Keith, we just got word of a powerful group of cards." The man said._

_  
"What cards?" the man, former intercontinental champion Bandit Keith, said._

"_There called the Wicked gods, sir." The robed man said. "They are said to rival the power of the Egyptian god cards."_

"_Do we have any clues as to where these cards may be?" Keith asked._

"_Our first theory was Industrial Illusions." The man said. "But one of our own infiltrated the company as a security guard and searched the card safes. We were unable to find the Wicked gods, but we did find these for you, sir." The man handed some cards to Keith._

_  
"Perfect. I'll use these in KaibaCorp's upcoming Battle City to get a deck full of rare cards." Keith said. "Now, do you have any other theory as to where the cards might be?"_

_  
"We were researching them, and we they may be hidden around the country." The man said. "One in a museum in Boston, Massachusetts, and the other at the Smithsonian Institute."_

"_Good." Keith said. "Now, my Neo Ghouls... Go and enter Kaiba's Battle City tournament!"_

_---_

"_It's time to put your dueling skills to the test. I hope none of you entered my tournament looking for friendly competition. Battle City's gonna be an all out war. Before my Battle City tournament begins, I thought I'd let you all know what you're in for, in case you wanna back out now. First, let's talk about the most important duel. The loser of the duel is forced to hand over their rarest card to the winner. If you don't want to risk your precious cards, then I suggest you forfeit now." Kaiba said._

_---_

"_So tell me, how did you get such a powerful card like the Five-Headed Dragon?" Bakura asked._

"_CJ gave it to me for my 16th birthday." Kylie said._

"_Wow... That's pretty cool." Bakura said. "Well, good luck in the finals."_

_  
"Thanks." Kylie said, as Bakura walked away. Kylie then stacked her Locator Cards and watched as a map of Battle City appeared on them. "Awesome... Battle City finals... Here I come."_

_---_

"_Here, Joey... Three of my Locator Cards..." Mai said. "Along with my Harpie Lady."_

"_Nah, keep that." Joey said. "You'll need that."_

"_Thank you, and good luck in the finals." Mai said._

"_Hey, don't sweat it." Joey said. "You're a good duelist. You can win more duels and turn those two Locator Cards into eight."_

"_Thanks, Joey." Mai said._

_---_

"_Perfect... We're going to the finals, Yug." CJ said. They stacked their Locator Cards and looked at the map of Battle City._

"_Yeah, and it looks like they're at KaibaCorp Stadium." Yugi said._

"_Then, let's go... to KaibaCorp Stadium." CJ said. "With any luck, Kylie will be there as well."_

**CHAPTER NINETEEN: Let the Finals Begin!**

"So, do you think Kylie will be at the finals?" Yugi asked.

"I can only hope so, Yugi." CJ said.

"If the finals are at KaibaCorp Stadium, that must mean that Kaiba finally finished building it."

"I guess so." CJ said.

_**Meanwhile...**_

"KaibaCorp Stadium? Again?" Joey wondered, looking at his map of Battle City.

_**Somewhere on the other side of Battle City...**_

Kylie walked down a long road to a large semi-built stadium. Around the stadium were various construction vehicles.

"This is the site of the finals? Really?" She wondered. "That's a little lame." She waited for a while and soon, Joey walked into the stadium.

"Hey, Kylie!" Joey said.

"Hey, Joey." Kylie said. "Are Yugi and CJ with you?"

"Nah. We split up after CJ's duel with Seeker, and we haven't seen each other since." Joey said. "I guess the plan was to meet up here."

"Assuming Yugi and CJ won eight Locator Cards." Tristan said.

"I'm sure they did." Kylie said. "After all, Yugi was King of Games and CJ has assembled some of the best cards in the game into his deck."

"Which is what makes him a prime target for anyone who wants rare cards." Joey said.

"And a prime target for the Neo Ghouls." Kylie added.

"Da who?" Joey asked.

"The Neo Ghouls." Kylie said. "They're the Rare Hunters, reborn. Seeker wasn't one of them, but the rest are working with Bandit Keith. They stole a group of powerful cards from CJ's company. Cards called the Wicked gods. According to CJ, they rival even Yugi's Egyptian god cards."

"Whoa... And Bandit Keith has 'em all?" Joey asked.

"No." Kylie said. "Bandit Keith only stole two. CJ won one of them off of Keith's henchman, Strings, and then he got the second one from a secret room in Industrial Illusions."

"So that's why I couldn't find it..." A new voice said. Everyone turned around and saw a familiar blond-haired, blue-eyed man in an American flag bandana, dark sunglasses and a Neo Ghoul robe.

"Bandit Keith!!" Kylie exclaimed. "No big surprise you made it to the finals."

"He must've cheated." Joey said.

"No, all I needed was my Wicked god card and my secret weapon." Keith said. "And, now I know why I couldn't find the last Wicked god. That stupid CJ hid it in his company." Kylie rushed forward and swung at Bandit Keith.

"Don't you dare talk about CJ like that!" She shouted. Bandit Keith chuckled as he grabbed her by the wrist and threw her to the ground. She screamed as she landed and her arm struck a large rock.

"Aah!"

"Kylie!" Everyone turned and saw CJ running into the stadium, followed by Yugi and Tea. CJ rushed over to Kylie and helped her up.

"Good... You made it." Keith said. "I was hoping you would. Now I can crush you and take the other two Wicked gods." He then looked at Yugi. "And then I'll take your god cards."

"Don't count on it. I'll be the one taking those cards." Everyone turned and saw Kaiba walking in. CJ gasped.

"So this whole tournament was so you could get the Wicked gods? Do you realize what you've done!?!" CJ exclaimed. "Because of your greed, Kylie's arm may be broken!"

"That's not my problem." Kaiba said.

"Not your problem?" CJ asked. He then punched Kaiba in the face, knocking him to the ground. "Wake up and smell the coffee, you snobby rich punk! Your stupid lust for power caused you to throw this tournament, all so you could get your greedy hands on Yugi's god cards, my Wicked gods and Kylie's title! Then, the Neo Ghouls got wind of it all and entered the tournament, hoping to find the last card, since they had already stolen the other two. And, knowing I was the owner of Industrial Illusions, they kept attacking me, and they kidnapped Kylie!"

"Still not my problem." Kaiba said.

"You IDIOT!!" CJ shouted, as Kaiba stood up. CJ punched Kaiba in the face again, knocking him back down. "If it weren't for your stupid tournament, I wouldn't have been attacked, and Kylie wouldn't have been separated from me, meaning she wouldn't have been thrown to the ground and had her arm broken by that scumbag over there!" He pointed to Keith.

"Excuse me?" Bandit Keith asked.

"NO!" CJ shouted, before slugging Keith and knocking him to the ground. Kaiba stood up and rubbed his cheek.

"I could have you disqualified for striking me." Kaiba said. "And, I could have you arrested. After all, I'm-"

"I freakin' know." CJ said. "You're filthy stinkin' rich. Don't forget, I own Industrial Illusions, so I'm just as rich." It was then that two more people walked into the stadium, catching everyone's attention.

"Are we late for the party?" One of them asked. He was an older man, with gray hair that was spiked like Yugi's, though it was covered with a black bandana. He had purple eyes and wore a white t-shirt and blue-green overalls.

"Grandpa? What are you doing here?" Yugi asked.

"I'm here for the tournament." Solomon Moto said.

"You mean you're dueling?" Yugi asked. Solomon held up his Duel Disk.

"Of course." He said.

_That means if I want to win, I'll have to duel my own grandpa!_ Yugi thought. Kylie then looked at the other person.

"I see you got eight more Locator Cards, huh, Bakura?" She asked. Bakura chuckled.

"Yup." He said. "I wagered my entire deck and beat a group of four duelists for them all."

"You won them all at once?" Joey asked, shocked. Bakura nodded.

"Yes." He said.

_Something's not right there..._ Joey thought. _Nah, I guess I'm just paranoid._

"Now that everyone's here, let me explain the rules." Kaiba said. "The finals will be fought in a bracket-style."

"I wonder if this'll be the same as the first Battle City finals?" Joey wondered.

"Each of you has been assigned a number." Kaiba said, handing a piece of paper to each finalist. "The numbers will be shuffled and paired up, setting up the duels." Two KaibaCorp grunts rolled out a machine that resembled the head of a Blue Eyes White Dragon. In its mouth was a glass orb filled with eight small balls marked with numbers 1 through 8. On either side were two claws, which doubled as openings for the balls to fall out of. Kaiba activated the machine and watched as the balls fell out two by two.

"Duel number one will be - Duelist 3: Kylie Howard vs Duelist 7: Bakura Ryou!" Kaiba said. Two more numbers fell out. "Duel number two will be - Duelist 4: Joey Wheeler vs Duelist 6: Solomon Moto!" Kylie smiled.

_Awesome... A rematch with Bakura._ She thought. _Sweet._

Joey gasped. _You mean I gotta duel Yugi's grandpa? Uh-oh._

_So, the teacher shall face the student. How fitting._ Solomon thought.

"Duel number three will be..." Kaiba smiled as two balls fell out. "Ah, it looks like I'll be taking your god cards early, Yugi."

"Which means I'll be facing you, Keith." CJ smiled.

"Good... I can get you out of the way early and work my way up to your girl's title." Keith said.

"Now, since we're all here, let's head to the finals." Kaiba said. Everyone was puzzled.

"You mean we're not already there?" Joey asked.

"No." Kaiba said, as a blimp flew overhead and landed in the stadium. It was a large gray blimp with a three-story, blue building underneath and large dueling arena atop it. Written on the side of the blimp were large letters that read "KC".

"Is that..." Yugi wondered.

"Kaiba's blimp?" Joey asked.

"Yes. The finals will take place on the KaibaCraft III." Kaiba said. "Now, board my blimp and let's get these finals underway." Everyone entered the blimp to find themselves in a long hallway. At one end was an elevator and at the other was the bridge.

"You will sleep in the rooms upstairs tonight and the finals will begin tomorrow." Kaiba said. "You have been assigned rooms determined by your duelist number." Everyone then boarded the elevator and entered the rooms. A short time later, CJ heard a knock at his door.

"Who's there?" He asked.

"It's me." Kylie said from the other side.

"Hold on." CJ said. He then got up and opened his door. "Come on in." Kylie followed CJ in and the two sat down on the bed. "So, what's up?"

"Just nervous about the finals." Kylie said.

"Don't worry." CJ said. "You can beat Bakura."

"It's not him I'm worried about." Kylie said. "I'm worried about what will happen if you lose to Bandit Keith and I have to duel him."

"I won't lose." CJ said. "I refuse to. There's too much riding on it. Now, let's get some sleep."


	20. Duel With Dark Ruler

**CHAPTER TWENTY: Duel With Dark Ruler**

Kylie sat up in her bed as daylight broke into the KaibaCraft III. The video phone in her room then turned on and a KaibaCorp employee appeared on it.

"Duelist 3: Kylie Howard and Duelist 7: Bakura Ryou please report to the dueling arena atop the blimp for the first match of the finals." He said. Kylie climbed out of bed and slipped on her pink tank top and jeans over her white bra and black panties. She then walked out into the hallway where CJ was waiting.

"Hey, CJ." She said.

"Ready for your duel with Bakura?" He asked.

"Of course. I beat him once, I can beat him now." Kylie said confidently.

"Don't get too cocky, Kylie." CJ said. The two then boarded the elevator and had soon arrived at the roof of the blimp, where Bakura waited, along with Kaiba, Mokuba, and a KaibaCorp employee. Kylie stepped into the arena and activated her Duel Disk.

"Ready to do this, Bakura?" Kylie asked.

"Of course." Bakura said. "But this time, things are going to end differently, my dear."

"Not quite." Kylie said. "And to prove it, I'll make the first move. I lay one card face down and summon Mirage Dragon (ATK: 1600)." Then, a golden dragon with flowing blue-green hair appeared on the field. "Now, you can't activate traps during the Battle Phase. Go."

"I lay three cards face down and summon Zolga (ATK: 1700)." Bakura said, sumoning a blue robotic monster with a long flowing purple robe and one glowing red eye. "Zolga, attack Mirage Dragon!!" Kylie gasped as her dragon was destroyed (LP: 4000 - 100). "Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Kylie said. "Go."

"I sacrifice Zolga to summon The Earl of Demise (ATK: 2000)." Bakura said, summoning a blue fiend in a red suit. "Now, since I successfully tributed Zolga, I gain 2000 life points (LP: 6000). Earl, attack that defense!" Kylie stood there as her defensive Lord of Dragons (DEF: 1100) was blown to bits. "Go."

"I summon another monster in defense mode." Kylie said. "Go."

"I summon Lady of Faith (ATK: 1100)." Bakura said, summoning a blue haired woman in a green robe and pink-and-purple hat. "Earl of Demise, attack her defense!! Lady of Faith, direct attack!!" Kylie gasped as Bakura's monsters rushed her field, clearing it and taking a chunk from her life points (LP: 4000 - 1100). "Go."

"I summon Horus the Black Flame Dragon LV 4 (ATK: 1600)." Kylie said, summoning a metallic silver dragon. "Horus, destroy Lady of Faith!!" Bakura watched as his Lady was destroyed (LP: 6000 - 500). "Now, I end my turn, and since my Black Flame Dragon destroyed a monster, he grows to Level 6 (ATK: 2300)." The dragon then spread its wings and was surrounded by a red aura.

"I activate Dark Room of Nightmare!" Bakura said. "Now, when you take damage from a card, you lose an extra 300 life points. Next, I activate Just Desserts, dealing you 500 points of damage." Kylie gasped as a translucent hand emerged from the ground and squeezed her head (LP: 2900 - 500), then Bakura's Dark Room shot a fireball at her (LP: 2400 - 300). "Finally, I switch the Earl of Demise to defense mode (DEF: 700). Go."

"Horus, attack Earl of Demise!" Kylie said. Her dragon then blasted Bakura's monster. "Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Bakura said. "Go."

"I summon Spirit Ryu (ATK: 1000)." Kylie said, summoning a blue dragon with a transparent body. "Horus, attack that defense! Spirit Ryu, direct attack!" Bakura stumbled back as Kylie's dragon attacked him (LP 5500 - 1000). "Go."

"I summon Dark King of the Abyss (ATK: 1200)." Bakura said, summoning a three-eyed, skeletal fiend. "Attack Spirit Ryu!" Kylie watched as her dragon was destroyed (LP: 2100 - 200). "Go."

"I discard Thunder Dragon to add two more to my hand." Kylie said. "Next, I play Polymerization to fuse the two Thunder Dragons to summon Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon (ATK: 2800)." Then, a two-headed red dragon appeared on the field. "Horus, destroy Dark King!!" Bakura grunted as his monster was destroyed and the explosion caused him to stumble (LP: 4500 - 1100). "Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon, direct attack!" Bakura fell onto his back as he was shocked by Kylie's dragon (LP: 3400 - 2800). "Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Bakura said. "Go."

"Horus, attack!" Kylie said. Bakura smiled as his monster revealed itself: a black cyclopean creature in a decorative jar.

"You attacked Morphing Jar #2 (DEF: 700)." Bakura said. "Now, we return all monsters on our fields to our decks, and shuffle our decks." The duelists fields were cleared and they shuffled their decks. "Next, we pick up cards until we're holding the same number of low level monsters that we returned to the deck." Bakura picked up two cards, then summoned a defense monster before discarding the other card he picked up. "Now, we summon the monsters we picked up."

"I end my turn." Kylie frowned.

"I flip summon Dweller in the Depths (ATK: 1500)." Bakura said, as a large cave appeared on his field. "And, my Dweller gains 300 attack points for each continuous spell card on my field (ATK: 1800). Dweller, attack Kylie directly!" Kylie shrieked as a dragon emerged out of the cave and bit her arm before vanishing back into the depths (LP: 1900 - 1800). "Go."

"Oh man..." CJ said. "Kylie has to make this move count or else she's done..."

"Don't worry, CJ." Yugi said. "She can do it."

"I hope so, Yugi." CJ said. "I hope so."

_Perfect..._ Bandit Keith thought. _Bakura will take Kylie's title, and then I'll crush him and get his title... Then I'll be King of Games. And, then, I'll take CJ's Wicked gods and I'll be unstoppable._

Kylie drew a card. "I activate Magical Mallet. Now, I add four cards from my hand to my deck, shuffle my deck and draw four new cards. Next, I summon Spear Dragon (ATK: 1900)." Kylie said, summoning a blue dragon with a long nose. "Spear Dragon, attack Dweller in the Depths!" Bakura watched as his monster was destroyed (LP: 600 - 100) and Kylie's dragon switched to defense (DEF: 0). "Next, I lay a card face down. Go."

"I activate Change of Heart to control Spear Dragon, which I'll sacrifice Dark Ruler Ha Des (ATK: 2450)." Bakura said.

"I activate Forced Back, which will force Dark Ruler Ha Des off the field and back into your hand." Kylie said.

"I end my turn." Bakura said.

"I lay two cards face down." Kylie said. "Go."

"Man, this duel is down to the wire." Joey said.

"I know." CJ said. "Kylie's down to only 100 life points, and Bakura's got 500. But, neither of them have any monsters."

"And, all Bakura has to do is activate a card that will inflict direct damage, or summon a monster, and it's all over." Yugi said.

"Not necessarily." CJ said. "Kylie's a tough duelist. She can get out of this."

"I pass." Bakura said.

"So do I." Kylie said.

"I summon the Gross Ghost of Fled Dreams (ATK: 1300)." Bakura said, summoning a skeletal fiend with purple hair, holding a shield and sword. "Attack!!"

"I reveal my trap: Gravity Bind!!" Kylie said. "Now, any level four or higher monsters can't attack, meaning I'm saved from your ghost's attack!"

"See? I told you Kylie could get of her bind." CJ said.

"Let's just hope Bakura doesn't have any spells that deal direct damage." Yugi said.

"Yeah."

"I end my turn." Bakura said.

"I summon a defense monster." Kylie said. "Go."

"I sacrifice my Gross Ghost to summon a defense monster." Bakura said. "Go."

"I activate Gravekeeper's Servant!" Kylie said. "Now you have to discard the top card on your deck any time you attack. Go."

"I sacrifice my face down Reaper of the Cards to summon Dark Ruler Ha Des (ATK: 2450)!" Bakura said, summoning a green fiend in a flowing brown robe.

"Oh no!" CJ gasped. "The Reaper's effect can destroy one trap on the field!"

"What?!" Kylie exclaimed.

"That's right." Bakura said. "By sacrificing my Reaper, I activated its effect, allowing me to destroy one trap card on the field, so say goodbye to Gravity Bind!! Now, Dark Ruler, attack Kylie's monster!! Go."

"I summon Masked Dragon (DEF: 1100)." Kylie said, summoning a white dragon with a red underside. "Go."

"I summon Fiend Reflection #2 (ATK: 1100)." Bakura said, summoning a red bird with a mirror where its abdomen should be. "Dark Ruler, destroy Masked Dragon!" Kylie smiled as her dragon was destroyed.

"Thanks." She said. "By destroying my dragon, its effect activated, allowing me to-"

"Not so fast, Kylie." Bakura said. "Thanks to Dark Ruler's effect, all of your effect monsters that are destroyed by fiends have their effects negated."

"Oh no... That means..."

"You're open to a direct attack." Bakura said. "Fiend Reflection #2, attack Kylie directly!!"

"Oh man... Kylie's about to lose the duel... and her title..." Yugi said.\

"No... She can't lose..." CJ said. "Kylie! You have to win this! I need you! I can't beat Bandit Keith alone!!"

"I activate Negate Attack!!" Kylie exclaimed. "This will stop your attack, and end the Battle Phase!"

"Go."

"I summon Lava Dragon (ATK: 1600) and remove a Light and a Dark monster from my graveyard from play to special summon Chaos Emperor Dragon- Envoy of the End (ATK: 3000)!" Kylie said, summoning a purple dragon and a large blue dragon with flowing orange hair and silver armor. "Chaos Emperor Dragon, attack Dark Ruler Ha Des!"

"Oh no!!" Bakura gasped, as his Dark Ruler was destroyed (LP: 0).

"Now, I'll be taking your Dark Ruler." Kylie said, as Bakura handed her his rarest card.

"Yes! Way to go, Kylie!!" CJ cheered.

"The winner is... Kylie Howard!!" Kaiba exclaimed. "Next up... Joey Wheeler versus Solomon Moto!" Joey looked at Yugi's grandfather and smiled nervously.

_Oh man... I have to face Yugi's grandpa... This is gonna be tough..._ Joey thought.

_I hope your ready for this, Joseph..._ Solomon thought. _It's time to show me how much you've really learned._


	21. Spellcaster's Command

**CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE: The Spellcaster's Command, Part 1**

Joey and Solomon stepped onto the dueling arena as Kylie and Bakura stepped down.

"Ready, Joseph?" Solomon asked. "It's time to see just how much you've learned, and just how far you've come since Yugi and I taught you this game."

"Joey, be careful!" Yugi said. "My grandpa's tough!"

"I know that, Yugi!" Joey said. "And, I'll start by summoning Rocket Warrior (ATK: 1500)." A warrior in green rocket-shaped armor then appeared on the field. "Next, I equip him with Lucky Iron Axe, increasing my warrior's strength by 500 (ATK: 2000). Go."

"I activate Giant Trunade to return all spells and traps on the field to their owner's hands." Solomon said. "Next, I summon Royal Magical Library (DEF: 2000) and equip it with Mist Body, so it can't be destroyed by battle." Then, a small wall of bookshelves appeared on Solomon's field. "Now, since I activated a spell card, my library gains a spell counter (SC: 1). Go."

"I sacrifice Rocket Warrior to summon The Legendary Fisherman (ATK: 1850)." Joey said, summoning a shirtless warrior with spiky black hair, garbed in jeans and riding on a shark. In his hand was a spear. "Next, I equip him with Lucky Iron Axe, increasing his strength by 500 (ATK: 2350). Next, I lay two cards face down. Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode and end my turn." Solomon said. "And, since you played a Spell Card, my Library gets a Spell Counter (SC: 2)."

"I lay a card face down." Joey said. "Legendary Fisherman, attack Gramp's defense!"

"Thank you, Joseph." Solomon said, as a woman in a red robe and blue cape appeared on the field briefly, before being destroyed. "You attacked my Crystal Seer (DEF: 100). And, thanks to her effect, I can pick up the top two cards on my deck, add one to my hand, and the second one goes to the bottom of my deck.

"I end my turn." Joey said.

"Oh man, Joey just goofed." Tea said.

"Not quite." Yugi said. "Joey didn't goof. Grandpa's just strong."

"No kidding." CJ said. "Even _I'm_ nervous about possibly having to face him."

"Actually, the winner of this duel will go on to face Kylie in the second round." Kaiba said.

"Oh great... That makes me feel good." Kylie said.

"I summon Summoner Monk (DEF: 1600)." Solomon said, summoning a white-haired, blue-skinned monk in a long purple hooded robe. "Next, I discard a card to special summon Skilled Dark Magician (DEF: 1700) from my hand." Then, a mage in a brown robe and blue armor appeared on the field.

_Mm hmm. I expected as much. _CJ thought.

"Finaly, I lay a card face down. Go." Solomon said.

"I activate the Field Spell, Sogen!" Joey said, as the field around them became a meadow. "Now, all my Warrior monsters gain 200 attack and defense points, and that includes my Legendary Fisherman (ATK: 2550)."

"Now, that means my Skilled Dark Magician and Royal Magical Library each gain a Spell Counter (Skilled Dark Magician: 1 SC) (Library: 3 SC)."

"Now, Legendary Fisherman, attack Summoner Monk!!" Joey commanded.

"I reveal my trap: Magic Cylinder!!" Solomon said.

"I reveal my trap: Dust Tornado!!" Joey said. "This'll destroy Magic Cylinder, and my Fisherman will still destroy Summoner Monk!" Solomon watched as his Monk was destroyed. "Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Solomon said. "Go, Joseph."

"Legendary Fisherman, attack that defense!" Joey said.

"You attacked Old Vindictive Magician (DEF: 600)." Solomon said, as a old mage in a blue robe and red armor was destroyed. Joey's fisherman then vanished as well. "Thanks to Old Vindictive Magician's effect, one of your monsters is destroyed, so say goodbye to the Legendary Fisherman."

"Oh man! I shoulda seen that coming!" Joey said.

"Relax, Joey!" Yugi called out.

"Yeah! You need to focus more! Solomon's tough! You have to think on your feet more!" CJ said.

"I end my turn." Joey said.

"I summon another monster in defense mode and switch Skilled Dark Magician to attack mode (ATK: 1900)." Solomon said. "Skilled Dark Magician, attack Joey directly! Skilled Magic Attack!" Joey stumbled back as Solomon's monster attacked him (LP: 4000 - 1900). "Go."

"I summon Swordsman of Landstar (DEF: 1400)." Joey said, summoning a pink, marshmallow-like humanoid monster in brown armor. "Next, I activate Scapegoat to summon four Sheep Tokens (DEF: 0 [x4])." Then, four small colored sheep appeared on Joey's field: one red, one orange, one blue and one pink.

"Good. Now my Skilled Magician gains another counter (SC: 2)." Solomon said.

"Go." Joey said.

"That's the way to do it, Joey!" Yugi said. "Now, you have more turns to defend yourself."

"I flip my Magical Plant Mandragola (DEF: 200)." Solomon said, as a fiendish, red flower appeared on his field. "Now, I can place one Spell Counter on every card on the field that can hold Spell Counters. Now, my Library and my Magician both have 3 spell counters. Now, I sacrifice my three spell counters from my library, along with my Skilled Dark Magician and its counters... First, I draw a card thanks to my library. Next, thanks to Skilled Dark Magician, I can summon Dark Magician (ATK: 2500)!" Everyone but CJ and Yugi gasped as Yugi's favorite monster appeared on Solomon's field.

"The Dark Magician..." CJ said. "Joey's gonna have a tough time now."

"You mean you're not surprised that Grandpa has the Dark Magician?" Yugi asked.

"Not at all." CJ said. "He taught you how to play Duel Monsters. I would be surprised if you two didn't share a favorite card. And, with a spellcaster deck like that, I expected that you're grandfather would have the legendary Dark Magician. And, as soon as that Skilled Dark Magician took to the field, I knew I was right."

"Wow..." Joey said. "You predicted his move?"

"Yup." CJ said. "From the moment he summoned his first spellcaster, I expected that I'd see the Dark Magician come onto the field."

"Hm... No wonder you nearly took Yugi's title." Solomon said. "And, no wonder Kylie beat my grandson, with a teacher like you."

"Thanks, Solomon." CJ said.

"I can see why Rebecca and Arthur trusted you with the Blue Eyes White Dragon." Yugi said.

"CJ... You mean that Blue Eyes White Dragon in your deck is the very same one that Arthur gave to me?" Solomon asked.

"Yes." CJ said. "After you returned it to Arthur, he gave it to Rebecca. And then she gave it to me as a symbol of our friendship, much like Yugi gave her the Ties of Friendship."

_Hm... CJ could be a tough one to beat if I face him in the tournament. Like Yugi and Joey, he has a belief in the Heart of the Cards... But I feel his belief may surpass even Yugi's._ Solomon thought.

"Wow... The Dark Magician..." Joey said.

"Maybe I should show him off." Solomon said. "Dark Magician, attack Swordsman of Landstar!!" Joey watched as his first defense was shattered. "Go, Joseph."

_Joey's got a tough duel ahead of him here... If he wants to move on, he's gonna have to find a way to take down that Dark Magician... And fast._CJ thought.

**To Be Continued...**


	22. Spellcaster's Command, Part 2

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_Next up... Joey Wheeler versus Solomon Moto!" Joey looked at Yugi's grandfather and smiled nervously._

_Oh man... I have to face Yugi's grandpa... This is gonna be tough... Joey thought._

_  
I hope your ready for this, Joseph... Solomon thought. It's time to show me how much you've really learned._

_--_

"_I summon Summoner Monk (DEF: 1600)." Solomon said, summoning a white-haired, blue-skinned monk in a long purple hooded robe. "Next, I discard a card to special summon Skilled Dark Magician (DEF: 1700) from my hand." Then, a mage in a brown robe and blue armor appeared on the field. _

_Mm hmm. I expected as much. CJ thought._

"_Finaly, I lay a card face down. Go." Solomon said._

_  
"I activate the Field Spell, Sogen!" Joey said, as the field around them became a meadow. "Now, all my Warrior monsters gain 200 attack and defense points, and that includes my Legendary Fisherman (ATK: 2550)."_

"_Now, that means my Skilled Dark Magician and Royal Magical Library each gain a Spell Counter (Skilled Dark Magician: 1 SC) (Library: 3 SC)." _

"_Now, Legendary Fisherman, attack Summoner Monk!!" Joey commanded._

"_I reveal my trap: Magic Cylinder!!" Solomon said._

_  
"I reveal my trap: Dust Tornado!!" Joey said. "This'll destroy Magic Cylinder, and my Fisherman will still destroy Summoner Monk!" Solomon watched as his Monk was destroyed. "Go."_

_--_

"_I flip my Magical Plant Mandragola (DEF: 200)." Solomon said, as a fiendish, red flower appeared on his field. "Now, I can place one Spell Counter on every card on the field that can hold Spell Counters. Now, my Library and my Magician both have 3 spell counters. Now, I sacrifice my three spell counters from my library, along with my Skilled Dark Magician and its counters... First, I draw a card thanks to my library. Next, thanks to Skilled Dark Magician, I can summon Dark Magician (ATK: 2500)!" Everyone but CJ and Yugi gasped as Yugi's favorite monster appeared on Solomon's field._

"_The Dark Magician..." CJ said. "Joey's gonna have a tough time now."_

_--_

"_Wow... The Dark Magician..." Joey said._

_  
"Maybe I should show him off." Solomon said. "Dark Magician, attack Swordsman of Landstar!!" Joey watched as his first defense was shattered. "Go, Joseph."_

_Joey's got a tough duel ahead of him here... If he wants to move on, he's gonna have to find a way to take down that Dark Magician... And fast. CJ thought._

**CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: The Spellcaster's Command, Part 2**

"Your move, Joey." Solomon said.

"Oh man... Joey has to deal with the Dark Magician now?" Tea asked. "How's he gonna win?"

"Don't lose faith, Tea." Yugi said. "Grandpa's a powerful duelist, but so is Joey. As long as he trusts in himself and his deck, anything's possible."

"I activate Card Destruction!" Joey said (Library SC: 1). "Now, we discard our hands and draw the same number of cards from our deck!" Joey discarded and drew three cards, while Solomon discarded and drew four. "Next, I summon Tiger Axe (DEF: 1300), lay a card face down and end my turn." A tiger in blue armor then appeared on Joey's field.

"I activate Magical Citadel of Endymion!" Solomon said (Library SC: 2), as Joey's field was replaced by a small medieval city. In the center of the city was a tall tower, which emitted a magical shield that surrounded the city. Joey frowned as his Tiger Axe then lost its power boost (DEF: 1100). Dark Magician, destroy Tiger Axe!!" Joey watched as his Tiger was destroyed. "Go."

"I summon Time Wizard (DEF: 400)!" Joey said, summoning a small clock like monster.

"All right! Joey can turn the duel around now!" Yugi said.

"Go! Time Roulette!" Joey cheered, as the spinner on his wizard's staff began to spin. He smiled as it landed on a red time machine.

"Time Magic!!" Time Wizard exclaimed. Solomon watched as his monsters were destroyed. It was then that Magical Library spell counters vanished and two lights on Solomon's tower lit up.

"When a card with spell counters is destroyed, the spell counters are transferred to my Citadel (SC: 2)." Solomon said.

"I end my turn." Joey said.

"I summon Blast Magician (ATK: 1400)!" Solomon said, summoning a mage in a red armor.

"I activate my trap: Trap Hole!" Joey said. "Now, your monster is destroyed." Solomon watched as his mage vanished.

"I lay a card face down and end my turn." Solomon said.

"I activate Heavy Storm!" Joey said. "Now, all spells and traps on the field are destroyed."

"Not quite. By removing a spell counter from my Citadel (SC: 1), it remains on the field." Solomon said.

"I end my turn." Joey said.

"I activate Spell Power Grasp!" Solomon said. "Now, my Magical Citadel gains another 2 spell counters (SC: 3): One thanks to my spell card's effect, and one thanks to its own. Go."

"I switch Time Wizard to attack mode (ATK: 500)." Joey said. "Attack!" Solomon chuckled as Time Wizard struck him with his sword (LP: 4000 - 500).

"Sorry, Joseph, but I've gotten stronger since last we dueled." Solomon said.

"No kidding." Joey said.

"Joey's in for a tough match." CJ said. "That spellcaster deck Solomon built is powerful. And, as long as that Citadel has spell counters, it's not going anywhere. _I'm _even a little nervous about the possibility of facing that deck."

"That's saying something." Yugi said.

"My move." Solomon said. "I lay one card face down. Go."

"Time Wizard, attack!" Joey said.

"I reveal my trap: Stronghold the Moving Fortress!" Solomon said, as a large machine appeared on his field (DEF: 2000). Joey gasped as Time Wizard just bounced off (LP: 2100 - 1500).

"I end my turn." Joey said.

"I sacrifice Stronghold to summon Disenchanter (ATK: 2000)." Solomon said, summoning a brown-haired female magician in a purple robe.

"Uh oh... One attack and it's all over." CJ said.

"Disenchanter, attack..."

_Don't say Time Wizard, Don't say Time Wizard, Don't say..._

"...Time Wizard!!" Solomon shouted.

"Oh no!!" Joey gasped.

"Disenchanting Wave!!" Solomon exclaimed. His mage then launched of wave of energy that shattered Time Wizard and knocked Joey down (LP: 0).

"Wow... What a duel..." Yugi said.

"I know.." CJ said.

"That means... I have to face Yugi's grandpa in the next round." Kylie said.

"Don't worry, Joseph." Solomon said. "I won't take your rarest card."

"Nah, you won it fair and square, Gramps." Joey said.

"That may be true, but I still won't take it." Solomon said. "An extra card could easily offset the delicate balance of my deck."

"Please, take it!" Kylie exclaimed. Everyone burst out laughing.

CJ walked over and put his arm around Kylie. "Don't worry, babe. You can beat him."

"I hope so." Kylie said. Kaiba then walked over.

"Yugi... I hope you're ready for our rematch." He said.

"Of course." Yugi said.

"Good. Because we're next." Kaiba smiled. Mokuba then stepped up into the arena.

"Attention... The next duel will now begin... Seto Kaiba versus Yugi Moto!" He said.

"Get ready, Yugi. It's time for the ultimate rematch!" Kaiba said.


	23. Ultimate Divinity

**CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: Ultimate Divinity**

"It's time to duel, Yugi!" Kaiba said. "And this time, things are going to end differently!!"

"Not quite, Kaiba!" Yugi said. "You forget! I have the god cards!"

"Not when I'm done!" Kaiba said. "Because when I win, I'll be taking those god cards!"

"Oh really?" Yugi asked. "I don't think so."

"This is gonna be good. God cards versus Ultimate Dragon." CJ said. "I can't wait to see this."

"I know." Kylie said.

"LET'S DUEL!!"

"I lay one card face down, Kaiba." Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon Peten the Dark Clown (ATK: 500)." Kaiba said, summoning a clown in a green and yellow striped outfit. "Peten, attack Yugi directly with Blood Lust Slash!!" Yugi cringed slightly as he was stabbed by Kaiba's clown (LP: 4000 - 500). "Go."

"I summon a monster in defense mode." Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon Ryu-Kishin Powered (ATK: 1600)." Kaiba said, summoning an armored red fiend. "Attack!!"

Yugi smiled as a marshmallow-like creature appeared on his field, leaped into the air, and bit Kaiba's arm (LP: 4000 - 1000).

"You attacked Marshmallon (DEF: 500), and when he's attacked while face down, you lose 1000 life points. And, he can't be destroyed in battle." Yugi said.

"I end my turn by switching Peten to defense mode (DEF: 1200)." Kaiba said.

"I activate Black Luster Ritual and sacrifice Buster Blader and Curse of Dragon from my hand to summon Black Luster Soldier (ATK: 3000)!" Yugi said, summoning a warrior in blue and gold armor with a flowing red ponytail. "Black Luster Soldier, attack Ryu-Kishin!!" Kaiba watched as his monster was destroyed (LP: 3000 - 1400). "Go."

"I summon Saggi the Dark Clown (DEF: 1500)." Kaiba said, summoning a clown in a blue clown suit and purple hat. "Go."

"I lay one card face down." Yugi said. "Black Luster Soldier, attack Saggi!" Kaiba watched helplessly as his defense was cleaved in half. "Go."

"I summon a defense monster." Kaiba said. "Go."

"Black Luster Soldier, attack that defense!!" Yugi said. Kaiba stood there as a blond-haired fiend in a purple suit (DEF: 1300) was destroyed. "Go."

"I summon Hitotsu-Me Giant (DEF: 1000)." Kaiba said, summoning a green cyclops. "Go."

"Black Luster Soldier, destroy Hitotsu-Me Giant!!" Yugi said, as his soldier sliced Kaiba's cyclops in half. "Go."

"I summon Kaiser Sea Horse (DEF: 1650)." Kaiba said, summoning a knight in blue and purple armor. "Go."

"I summon Big Shield Gardna (DEF: 2600)." Yugi said, summoning a warrior with spiked black hair that was crouched behind a large shield. "Black Luster Soldier, attack Kaiser Sea Horse! Go."

"Yugi's not gonna get anywhere if he doesn't destroy both of Kaiba's monsters." Tea said.

"The only problem with that is when he destroys Peten, Kaiba can remove it from play to summon another one." CJ said.

"I summon La Jinn the Mystical Genie of the Lamp (DEF: 1000)." Kaiba said, summoning a green genie. "Go."

"I summon Green Gadget (ATK: 1400)." Yugi said, summoning a green gear monster. "Now, I can add Red Gadget to my hand. Green Gadget! Black Luster Soldier! Destroy those defenses!" Kaiba watched as his two monsters were destroyed, and another Peten took to the field.

"I remove Peten from play to summon another Peten the Dark Clown (DEF: 1200)." Kaiba said.

"Told ya." CJ said.

"Go." Yugi said.

"I summon Mystic Horseman (DEF: 1550)." Kaiba said, summoning a creature that was half man and half horse. "Go."

"I summon Red Gadget (ATK: 1300) and add Yellow Gadget to my hand." Yugi said, summoning a red version of his Green Gadget. "Green Gadget, destroy Peten! Black Luster Soldier, destroy Mystic Horseman!" Kaiba watched as Peten was destroyed, then he summoned another one (DEF: 1200).

"Here's another Dark Clown." Kaiba smiled.

"Red Gadget, destroy the last Peten!" Yugi commanded, as his gadget destroyed Kaiba's final clown. "Go."

"I summon another Kaiser Sea Horse (DEF: 1650)." Kaiba said. "Go."

"I activate Mystic Box!" Yugi said. "Now, Kaiser Sea Horse is destroyed, and Big Shield Gardna is left in his place."

"That was dumb." Kaiba said.

"I summon Yellow Gadget (ATK: 1300)." Yugi said. "Black Luster Soldier, destroy Big Shield Gardna! Go."

_Yugi could've finished Kaiba off... What's he waiting for? _CJ wondered.

"I summon a defense monster." Kaiba said. "Go."

"I sacrifice Red Gadget, Green Gadget and Yellow Gadget to summon Slifer the Sky Dragon (ATK: 6000)!" Yugi said, holding up a card. Clouds then filled the area and lightning began to strike all around. A long, red dragon with large wings, two mouths, and a black underside emerged from the clouds. "Slifer, destroy that defense! Thunder Force Attack!!" Kaiba watched as his defense was obliterated. "Go."

"I pass..." Kaiba said.

"I lay a card face down." Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon Familiar Knight (DEF: 1400)." Kaiba said, summoning a knight in silver armor and a red cape.

"Slifer! Activate your special ability!" Slifer then launched an energy blast at Kaiba's knight, clearing its defense points (DEF: 0).

"Go."

"I lay one card face down." Yugi said.

"What's Yugi doing?" Joey wondered.

"I don't know. It's not like him to toy with an opponent." Tea said.

"But let's not forget. This is Kaiba he's dueling." Tristan pointed out.

"Yes, but even so, Yugi doesn't toy with his opponents." Solomon said.

"It's true." CJ said. "He went all out against me."

"I pass." Kaiba said.

"I pass as well." Yugi said.

"I summon Spear Dragon (DEF: 0)." Kaiba said, summoning a blue dragon. "Go."

"Slifer! Black Luster Soldier! Destroy those two defenses!!" Yugi said, as Kaiba's monsters were destroyed and replaced by a metallic dragon (DEF: 1200).

"Thanks, Yugi." Kaiba said. "By destroying familiar knight, you let me summon Rare Metal Dragon."

"But I also get to summon a monster, and I choose Queen's Knight (ATK: 1500)." Yugi said, summoning a blond, female knight in red armor. "Attack Rare Metal Dragon! Go."

"I pass." Kaiba said.

"I discard one card to summon The Tricky (ATK: 2000)!" Yugi said, summoning a jester-like monster in a yellow and black bodysuit and blue cape with a red "?" on its chest. "Go."

"I pass." Kaiba said. "Go."

"I figured it out!" CJ exclaimed.

"Figured what out?" Kylie asked.

"Why Yugi's stalling." CJ said.

"Well, we haven't, so could ya clue us in?" Joey asked.

"Kaiba started the duel so confidently that he'd win and take Yugi's god cards, right?" CJ asked.

"Yeah." Tea said.

"Yugi's waiting to get all three god cards on the field and deal Kaiba the ultimate defeat." CJ said.

"He better hurry." Solomon said. "If he waits too long, Kaiba will recover and possibly win."

"No kidding." CJ said. _Come on, Yugi... Stop screwing around and finish this... I want another shot at those god cards..._

"I pass." Yugi said.

"I set a defense." Kaiba said. "Go."

"I pass again." Yugi said.

"I summon another defense." Kaiba said. "Go."

"I sacrifice Marshmallon and The Tricky to summon Gaia the Fierce Knight (ATK: 2300)!" Yugi said, summoning a knight in a black bodysuit and blue armor riding a purple horse. "Next, I play Monster Reborn to revive Buster Blader (ATK: 2600)!" Then, a warrior in purple and gold armor took to the field. "Then, I lay a card face down and activate Card of Sanctity so we each draw until we're holding six cards. Slifer! Black Luster Soldier! Destroy those defenses! Go."

"I pass." Kaiba said.

"I pass as well." Yugi said.

"I pass again." Kaiba said.

_Come on, Yugi... Finish him!_ CJ thought.

_Yugi, stop goofing off._ Kylie thought. _Kaiba's a tough duelist. Keep messing with him and he's gonna catch up... Or worse._

"I play Polymerization to fuse Buster Blader with the Dark Magician in my hand to summon Dark Paladin (ATK: 2900)!!" Yugi said, as a monster in silver-blue and gold armor took to the field. In its hand was a scepter with a blade at one end. Slifer's power then dropped (ATK: 5000). "Go."

"I set a defense." Kaiba said. "Go."

"I sacrifice Black Luster Soldier... Gaia the Fierce Knight... and Dark Paladin..." Yugi said, holding up a card. It then began to glow as his monsters vanished into it. He smiled as he began to chant.

"Here comes number two... The big one..." CJ said.

"Almighty protector of the sun and sky...  
I beg of thee, please hear my cry...  
Transform yourself from orb of light...  
And bring me victory in this fight...  
I beseech thee... grace our humble game...  
But first I shall... Call out thy name!!

Winged Dragon of Ra (ATK: 8200)!!!" Yugi shouted, as the sacred golden dragon Ra took to the field.

"8200 attack points!?! Oh no!!" Kaiba exclaimed.

"Ra! Destroy that defense!" Yugi shouted. "Blaze Cannon!!" Kaiba watched as his defense burst into a million pieces. "Go."

"I lay one card face down." Kaiba said. "Go."

"I summon King's Knight (ATK: 1600)." Yugi said, summoning a blond, male knight in orange armor. "And, since King's Knight and Queen's Knight are both on the field, I can automatically summon Jack's Knight (ATK: 1900)." Then, a blond, male knight in blue armor appeared next to the other two knights. "Go."

Kaiba drew a card and Yugi smiled.

"I activate Lightforce Sword!" He said. Kaiba watched as a sword pierced his cards, pinning one to the ground behind him.

"No! My Enemy Controller!" Kaiba exclaimed. "No matter... I activate Return from the Different Dimension! I pay half my life points (LP: 1600 - 800) to return my two Petens back to the field (DEF: 1200 [x2]). Go."

"I sacrifice King's Knight, Queen's Knight and Jack's Knight..." Yugi said, holding up another card. His three knights vanished into it. He laid it onto his duel disk and a beam of light shot out of the sky, enveloping the blimp. A large, muscular, blue warrior-like creature emerged from the light. It had seven horns on its head, two spikes on each shoulder, and glowing red eyes. "...to summon Obelisk the Tormentor (ATK: 4000)!! Now, I activate the abilities of my Egyptian gods! By sacrificing two of them, I can bestow upon the third... Infinite Strength!!" Slifer then wrapped itself around Obelisk. Ra then became covered in fire and perched itself on Obelisk's shoulder, and Obelisk began to glow with a purple aura. "Egyptian gods!! Titan Fire Storm!!" Kaiba gasped as Obelisk rushed his field and slammed his fist to the ground, obliterating every monster and the rest of Kaiba's life points (LP: 0).

"No... No way... It... It can't be..." Kaiba said.

"You wanted to see my god cards?" Yugi asked. "Well, you did."

"Oh yeah!" CJ cheered. "Way to go, Yugi!!"

"The winner is... Yugi Moto!!" Exclaimed Mokuba.

* * *

A/N: I know that chapter seemed longer than the rest. It was originally going to be two chapters. The first chapter came out to a reasonable length, but the second was awkwardly short, so I decided to combine them into one.


	24. A Ghoulish Victory

**CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR: A Ghoulish Victory**

"Attention, everyone!" Mokuba exclaimed. "We will take a short break before the next duel. You may return to your rooms and we will meet back here in thirty minutes." Everyone headed with CJ and Yugi back to CJ's cabin.

"There's only one duel left in this round..." Yugi said.

"Yeah. My duel with Bandit Keith." CJ said. "And with two of the Wicked gods in my deck, I should have no problem getting the third from Keith. And, I've added a few cards to my deck that should ensure my victory. I can't afford to lose the two Wicked gods I already have."

"So, what did you power you deck up with?" Yugi asked.

"You'll see when I duel." CJ said.

"Fine." Yugi said. A short time later, everyone had returned to the duel arena atop the blimp. CJ and Bandit Keith were standing in the arena, staring at each other.

"The final showdown..." CJ said. "I win this, you return that last Wicked god to me."

"Too bad that Wicked god is going to destroy you first." Bandit Keith said.

"Not quite." CJ said. "I've assembled my deck to defeat you as quickly as I possibly can."

"Well, let's just see." Bandit Keith said, as he and CJ activated their Duel Disks.

"LET'S DUEL!"

"I start by placing a card face down and summoning Lord of Dragons (ATK: 1200)." CJ said, summoning a warrior in golden dragon-like armor and a blue cape. "Go."

"I lay three cards face down." Keith said. "Go."

"Lord of Dragons, attack!" CJ said.

"I activate my trap: Ready for Intercepting!" Keith said. "Now, your Lord of Dragons switches to face-down defense position."

"I end my turn." CJ said.

"I summon Blue Thunder T-45 (ATK: 1700)." Keith said, summoning a blue spaceship. "Attack!"

"I reveal my trap: Negate Attack!" CJ said. "This will negate your attack and end the Battle Phase."

"Fine." Keith said. "I end my turn."

"I pass." CJ said.

"Blue Thunder, attack!" Keith said. CJ watched as his only defense was destroyed. "Now, I can summon a Thunder Option Token (ATK: 1500). However, since tokens can't attack directly in this tournament, I'll have to end my turn."

"I'll summon one monster in defense mode." CJ said. _I hate to throw away a piece of Exodia, but I have no choice._ "Go."

"All right, my token, attack that defense!" Keith said, as CJ's defensive Right Arm of the Forbidden One. "Ha! You actually had to throw away a piece of Exodia? Good. That means I don't have to worry about it. Now, Blue Thunder, attack CJ directly!" CJ stumbled back as he was struck by missles from Keith's spaceship (LP: 4000 - 1700). "Go."

"I play Rain of Mercy, increasing both our life points by 1000 (CJ: 3300) (Keith: 5000)." CJ said. "Next, I summon a defense. Go."

"Thunder Option Token, attack that defense!" Keith said. CJ frowned as another Exodia piece was destroyed. "Blue Thunder, attack!" CJ gasped as he was hit by another missile (LP: 3300 - 1700). "Go."

_This is bad... If I can't find somehting to defend my life points with, I'll lose on Keith's next turn._ CJ thought. "I summon Gemini Elf (ATK: 1900)." A pair of elven girls appeared on the field: one had red hair and a purple dress and the other had blonde hair and a light blue dress. "Now my elves, destroy Blue Thunder T-45!" Keith growled as his monster exploded (LP: 5000 - 200). "Go."

"I switch my token to defense mode (DEF: 1500)." Keith said. "Go."

"I play Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two cards." CJ said. "Next, I summon Big Shield Gardna (DEF: 2600). Now, my elves, attack that token! Your move, Keith."

"I summon a defense monster." Keith said. "Go."

"I summon Morphing Jar (DEF: 600). Next, I sacrifice all three of my monsters to Special Summon one of my most powerful monsters... The Wicked Eraser (ATK: ????)!!" CJ smiled as a mechanical silver dragon-like monster appeared on his field, surrounded by blue flames. It had two large horns, a long snout, and a blue-green gem on its chest. "Now, my Eraser gains 1000 attack and defense points for each card you control (ATK: 3000)! Now, my Eraser, attack that defense!!" Keith grew angry as his defense was destroyed, but CJ's eraser was weakened (ATK: 2000).

"I summon a defense monster." Keith said, as CJ's Eraser was strengthened (ATK: 3000). "Go."

"I lay one card face down." CJ said. "Eraser, attack that defense! Go."

"Another defense." Keith said. "Go."

"Eraser, attack!!" CJ said. "Go."

"Man, CJ has got Bandit Keith on the ropes." Kylie said. "He wasn't kidding. He did build his deck to defeat Keith."

"Yeah, but Keith is strong." Yugi said. "He could easily turn this around."

"I activate Zera Ritual and sacrifice two cards from my hand to summon Zera the Mant (ATK: 2800)."

"Good move." Joey said.

"Yeah, but Eraser is still stronger." Yugi said.

"I activate Reasoning!" Keith said. "Now, you declare a monster level."

"I say seven." CJ said.

"Good. Now I pick up cards from my deck until I get a monster." Keith said, picking up cards. "I got one. And, since it's the same level as the one you called, I have to send it to the graveyard. Now, since I only have two cards on my field, your Eraser is weakened (ATL: 2000). Zera, destroy Eraser!!" CJ watched as his first Wicked god was destroyed (LP: 1600 - 800). "Go."

"I play Advanced Ritual Art! I sacrifice Blue Eyes White Dragon from my deck to summon Black Luster Soldier (ATK: 3000)!!" CJ said, summoning a red haired warrior in gold and dark blue armor. "Attack Zera the Mant!" Keith glared at CJ as his monster was destroyed (LP: 4800 - 200). "Go."

"I pass." Keith said.

"I play Giant Trunade to return all spells and traps on the field to their owner's hand." CJ said. "Next, I lay one card face down. Black Luster Soldier, attack Keith directly!" Keith grunted as Black Luster Soldier struck him with its sword (LP: 4600 - 3000). "Go."

"I lay one card face down and summon a defense." Keith said. "And, now I end my-"

"I reveal my trap: Destiny Board!" CJ said. "Now, since you were about to end your turn, I can activate Spirit Message "I"!" Then, the letters "F" and "I" appeared above CJ, each inside a flaming skull.

"So, that's what he meant..." Yugi said.

"Huh?" Kylie asked.

"I was wondering what CJ had added to his deck to defeat Keith." Yugi said. "Now I know."

"Now, it's my turn." CJ said. "Black Luster Soldier, attack!!" Keith watched as another defense was destroyed. "Go."

"I summon another defense and end my turn." Keith said.

"Good." CJ said, as the letter "N" appeared above him. "That activates Spirit Message "N"! Now, Black Luster, attack! Go."

"Another defense." Keith said. "Go."

"Spirit Message "A"!" CJ said. "Go."

"I summon a defense and end my turn." Keith said. CJ smiled as the letter "L" appeared above him, spelling the word "FINAL".

"I've won, Keith." CJ said.

"But, how?" Keith wondered. "I had... a Wicked god..." CJ smiled as a beam shot out of Destiny Board, knocking Keith over. CJ walked over and grabbed his deck. He thumbed through it, grabbed Keith's Wicked god, and chuckled.

"So that's why you were so confident." He said. "You had Exodia... Too bad it failed you. And, now, I have the final Wicked god... The Wicked Avatar. I've gotten all three back."

"You got lucky!" Keith exclaimed. "But this... is... not... OVER!!" Suddenly Keith opened his cloak into a cape and leaped off the blimp, miraculously soaring to Domino City below.

"How the-?"

"Attention everyone!" Mokuba exclaimed. "Rest up, and the first duel of the semi-finals will begin tomorrow morning! The first duel will be Solomon Moto versus Kylie Howard! Prepare your decks and make sure you're ready to duel tomorrow!"

_**Later...**_

CJ and Kylie were sitting in his cabin. CJ was sitting on the bed, and Kylie was lying down with her head resting on CJ's lap. CJ gently stroked Kylie's cheek with the back of his hand.

"I don't want to lose." Kylie said.

"You won't, as long as you stay focused." CJ said. "Solomon's a tough duelist, and he's not one to let mistakes slide."

"I don't make mistakes." Kylie said. CJ placed his hand under Kylie's chin and titled her head up so that they were looking each other in the eyes.

"You get over-confident." CJ said. "Don't let it happen." He placed his hand behind Kylie and titled her up toward him until their lips met. "Now go get some sleep."

_**The next morning...**_

Yugi walked into CJ's room.

"Hey, CJ. I went to get Kylie up for you to make sure she's ready for her duel, but I couldn't find-" Yugi chuckled when he saw CJ and Kylie cuddling together in CJ's bed, asleep. "Never mind." He then walked out. Tea came walking down the hall.

"Is CJ up?" She asked. Yugi shook his head. "Well, we better wake him up so he can help us find Kylie." Yugi stopped Tea as she walked toward CJ's room. She looked in and chuckled. "They make such a cute couple."

"Well, they have history." Yugi said.

"What do you mean?" Tea asked.

"Come on, I'll explain everything." Yugi said, as he and Tea started walking back to his room. By the time they reached his room, he had nearly finished his story.

"And that's when CJ told her what happened." Yugi said. "And the rest is history."

"Oh wow... I never knew." Tea said.

"Now you do, but do me a favor and don't say anything to anyone." Yugi said. "Especially Kylie. I'm not even sure if she knows that Joey and I know about her parents."

"Joey knows?" Tea asked.

"CJ told us." Yugi said.

"Oh." Tea said.

"Attention, everyone!" Mokuba said over the loudspeaker. "The next duel will begin in 30 minutes."


	25. Spell of the Dragon

**CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: Spell of the Dragon, Part 1**

"Come on, we better get CJ and Kylie up." Yugi said, as he and Tea walked toward CJ's room. "We don't want to miss her duel."

"She's up." CJ said, walking out of the room, as the door closed behind him.

"Is she coming out?" Yugi asked.

"She's taking a shower." CJ said. "She said to head up to the arena. She'll be up shortly."

_**Later, in the arena...**_

Kylie and Solomon stood face to face in the arena, Duel Disks at the ready.

"Well, Kylie, are you ready for this?" Solomon asked.

"I hope so." Kylie mumbled. _No._ She thought.

"CJ's an excellent duelist. Almost as good as my grandson." Solomon said. "I know you beat Yugi, now let's see just how much you've learned from CJ."

"I play Magical Mallet, add 4 cards from my hand to my deck, shuffle it..." Kylie shuffled her deck. "...And draw four new cards. Next, I summon Lava Dragon (ATK: 1600) and equip it with Black Pendant (ATK: 2100)." Then, a purple dragon with eight legs appeared on Kylie's field. Around its neck was a purple amulet. "Go."

"I summon Blast Magician (DEF: 1700) and activate Swords of Revealing Light to stop all your attacks for three turns." Solomon said, as a mage in a red robe appeared on his field. "Now, since a spell card was activated, my Magician gains 1 spell counter (SC: 1)."

"Oh no... Here go the spell counters again." Kylie said.

"Oh man... Those spell counters were what beat me." Joey said.

"But Kylie's tough." CJ said. "She can beat Solomon."

"Now, to end my turn, I lay one card face down." Solomon said. "Go."

"I summon Mirage Dragon (ATK: 1600) and lay one card face down." Kylie said. "Now, thanks to Mirage Dragon's effect, you can't activate trap cards during the Battle Phase. Now, go."

"I actiate Pitch-Black Power Stone!" Solomon said. "Now, my Stone gets three spell counters (SC: 3). And, thanks to its effect, I can move one of those counters to my Magician (SC: 2 [x2]). Go."

"I pass." Kylie said.

"I lay another card face down and add another counter to my Magician (SC: 3)." Solomon said. "Go."

"I activate Polymerization to fuse Lava Dragon, Mirage Dragon and three dragons from my hand to summon Five-Headed Dragon (ATK: 5000)!!" Kylie said, as a new dragon appeared on the field. It had a tan colored body and five heads: one made of fire, one of a sea serpent, one made of metal, one golden colored with the appearance of sand, and one of darkness.

"No way!" Yugi exclaimed.

"Told you Kylie's tough." CJ said. "It's only been three turns and she's already summoned her best monster."

"And, since Black Pendant went to the graveyard, you lose 500 life points (LP: 4000 - 500) but since your swords are still in effect, I'll end my turn." Kylie said.

"Thanks to your spell card, my Magician gains another spell counter (SC: 4)." Solomon said. "Next, I activate another Pitch-Black Power Stone (SC: 3). Then, I'll take one spell counter from each of my stones and add them my Magician (SC: 6). So, my first Stone is destroyed. Finally, I summon Defender the Magical Knight." Then, a spellcaster knight in blue armor carrying a large blue shield appeared on the field. "And, when he's summoned, he gains 1 spell counter (SC: 1). Go."

"Five-Headed Dragon, attack Blast Magician!"

"Not so fast!" Solomon exclaimed. "By sending Defender's counter away, I can save my Magician from being destroyed."

"I end my turn."

"I activate Terraforming to add Magical Citadel of Endymion to my hand, which I'll then activate." Solomon said, as a large city surrounded the two duelists. In the center of the city, behind Solomon, was a tall tower. A magician in a purple robe and purple armor appeared on the field. "Next, I summon Apprentice Magician (DEF: 800) and use his ability to add a spell counter to Blast Magician. Then, I move a spell counter from my Power Stone (SC: 2 - 1) to my Blast Magician (SC: 10). Finally, I remove 8 spell counters from my Blast Magician."

"Uh oh... That's bad." CJ said. "Now, Solomon can multiply the number of counters he removed by 700 and destroy a monster with attack power equal to or less than that number."

"That's right." Solomon said. "And, since I got rid of 8 counters, I can destroy a monster with 5600 attack points or less."

"And my dragon has 5000... That means..." Kylie realized.

"That means your dragon is destroyed!!" Solomon said, as Kylie's dragon exploded. "Next, I switch Blast Magician and Defender to attack mode (ATK: 1400) (ATK: 1600). Now, I activate Magicians Unite! Now, my Blast Magician's attack power become 3000. Blast Magician, attack Kylie directly!"

"Oh no!" CJ exclaimed. Kylie stumbled back as Solomon's mage struck her (LP: 4000 - 3000).

"I end my turn." Solomon said.

_No way! That card can save me... I hope..._ Kylie realized, drawing a card. "I summon Time Wizard (DEF: 400)." Then, a red clock monster in a purple cape appeared on the field. "Now, Time Wizard, activate your special ability!!"

"Time Magic!!" Time Wizard exclaimed. Kylie smiled as Time Wizard's spinner landed on a red time machine. Solomon chuckled as his monsters were destroyed.

"Since my Blast Magician had 2 spell counters on them when he was destroyed, I can move the counters to my Citadel." Solomon said. _She __**is**__ good... CJ's trained her well._

_Wow... CJ really has trained Kylie to be a powerful duelist. I've never seen anyone come back from Grandpa's Blast Magician-Magicians Unite combo._ Yugi thought.

"I move my final spell counter from my Power Stone to my Citadel (SC: 3)." Solomon said. "Next, I summon Breaker the Magical Warrior (ATK: 1600)." Then, a magician in red armor appeared on the field. "And, when it's summoned, it gains 1 spell counter (SC: 1) and 300 attack points (ATK: 1900). Now, Breaker, attack Time Wizard!! Go."

"I play Monster Reborn!" Kylie exclaimed. "Now, I can bring back a monster from my graveyard and I choose one of the monsters I used to summon my Five Headed Dragon... Luster Dragon #2 (ATK: 2400)!" Then, a green dragon with whitish-blue stones on its back appeared on the field. "Destroy Breaker!!" Solomon stood there as Breaker was destroyed (LP: 3500 - 500) and his spell counter moved to Solomon's Citadel (SC: 4). "Your move, Mr Moto."

"Quite Impressive, Miss Howard." Solomon said, drawing a card. "I set a monster in defense mode and lay one card face down. Go."

"I lay one card face down." Kylie said. "Luster Dragon #2, destroy his defense!!" Solomon watched as an old mage in red armor was destroyed, followed by Kylie's dragon.

"Thank you." Solomon said. "By destroying my Old Vindictive Magician, you allowed me to destroy your dragon."

"I end my turn." Kylie said.

"This is bad." Yugi said. "All Grandpa has to do is summon a monster with 1000 attack points and he's won."

"Don't count Kylie out yet." CJ said. "She's a powerful duelist."

_Not powerful enough, I'm afraid..._ Kylie thought.

_Powerful is an understatement, CJ._ _I need to be careful._ Solomon thought, reaching for his deck. _I need to be careful. Kylie's strong. I may have underestimated her power._ Solomon thought, drawing a card. "I pass."

"No way!"

_Kylie, you got lucky there... But be careful. Solomon's strong. One wrong move and it's over._ CJ thought.


	26. Spell of the Dragon, Part 2

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX: Spell of the Dragon, Part 2**

"I pass." Solomon said.

"No way!" Yugi exclaimed.

"Gramps passed his turn?" Joey asked, shocked.

"Either he's going easy on Kylie or..." Tea started.

"He didn't draw anything he could use." CJ said. "There's no way he'd go easy on her. I'm sure he's realized her strength by now."

"I pass as well." Kylie said.

"I hope we haven't reached a stalemate." CJ said.

"I doubt it." Yugi said. "One of them will turn this around s-"

"I pass." Solomon said.

"WHAT?!?" Everyone exclaimed simultaneously.

"I guess not." Yugi said.

"I pass again as well." Kylie said.

_Kylie, stop screwing around. Solomon's probably toying with you._ CJ thought. _Don't let him gain a lead._

"I lay one card face down." Solomon said. "Go."

"I activate Giant Trunade, returning all spells and traps on the field to their owner's hand." Kylie said, as Solomon's field spell vanished. "Next, I lay a card face down. Go."

"I lay two cards face down and summon Summoner Monk (DEF: 1600)." Solomon said, summoning an old monk in a purple robe. "Go."

"I discard Thunder Dragon from my hand to add two more to my hand." Kylie said. "Next, I activate Polymerization to fuse-"

"I activate Twister!" Solomon said. "I pay 500 life points (LP: 3000 - 500) to destroy Polymerization. Now, my Citadel gains 2 spell counters (SC: 2)."

"I end my turn." Kylie said, frowning.

"Don't give up Kylie!" CJ exclaimed. "You can still win this!"

"I lay one card face down and switch my monk to attack mode (ATK: 800)." Solomon said. "Attack Kylie directly!!" Kylie stumbled as Solomon's monk blasted her with an energy strike (LP: 1000 - 800). "Go."

"I lay one card face down." Kylie said. "Go."

"Summoner Monk, attack her and end this duel!"

"I reveal my trap: Gravity Bind!!" Kylie exclaimed. "Now, all level four or higher monsters can't attack!"

"I lay one card face down." Solomon said. "Go."

"I summon Spirit Ryu (ATK: 1000)." Kylie said, summoning a spirit-like blue dragon. "Go."

"I activate Stronghold the Moving Fortress, summoning it in defense mode (DEF: 2000)." Solomon said, summoning a large machine. "Go."

"I sacrifice Spirit Ryu to summon Summoned Skull (ATK: 2500)." Kylie said, summoning a skeletal monster with large blue wings and visible purple muscle under its bones. "Go."

"I summon a defense monster." Solomon said. "Go."

"I remove a light and a dark monster in my graveyard from play to Special Summon Chaos Emperor Dragon (ATK: 3000)." Kylie said.

"That's Kylie's victory card!!" Yugi exclaimed.

"But, she doesn't have enough life points to use its effect." CJ said.

"Oh yeah... She needs to pay 1000 life points and she only has 200." Joey said.

"I end my turn." Kylie said. "Go."

"I sacrifice my defense and Stronghold to summon Dark Magician (ATK: 2500)!" Solomon said, summoning the legendary magician. "Next, I lay one card face down and end my turn."

"I summon Blizzard Dragon (ATK: 1800)." Kylie said, summoning a blue dragon with an icy mist flowing from its wings. "Go."

"I summon Mei-Kou, Master of Barriers (ATK: 1700)." Solomon said, summoning a mage in a white and purple robe. "Go."

"I summon Mirage Dragon (ATK: 1600)." Kylie said, summoning a golden dragon. "Next, I discard one card using Malice Dispersion to destroy all face-up continuous traps on the field, including my Gravity Bind! Now, my Battle Phase begins, rendering your traps useless!"

"This may be it..." CJ said.

"Chaos Emperor Dragon, attack Dark Magician! Summoned Skull, attack Mei-Kou! Blizzard Dragon, attack Summoner Monk! Mirage Dragon, attack Solomon's life points!!" Kylie commanded. Everyone watched in shock as Kylie's monsters destroyed Solomon's monsters, along with the remainder of his life points (LP: 0).

"I was right... You are indeed a powerful duelist." Solomon said, shaking hands with Kylie. "For beating me, I want you to have this." Solomon held out his Dark Magician.

"I... I can't take that..." Kylie said.

"Please." Solomon said. "It's yours. I have more at my shop anyway."

"Wow... Thanks, Mr Moto." Kylie said.

"You're very welcome." Solomon said. CJ turned to Yugi.

"We're next, Yug." CJ said.

"Yeah." Yugi said. "And the winner of this faces Kylie."

"This will be a fun duel." CJ said. "But let's give it higher stakes. I win, you give me all three Egyptian gods. You win, I'll give you all three Wicked gods."

"Deal." Yugi said.

"The next duel will now begin... Yugi Moto vs CJ Francis!!" CJ and Yugi activated their Duel Disks and smiled.

"Ready, old friend?" CJ asked.

"Of course." Yugi said.

"Okay, then..."

"LET'S DUEL!!!"


	27. Clash of the gods

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN: Clash of the gods**

"This is it, Yug." CJ said. "The day you lose your Egyptian gods."

"Don't count on it." Yugi said. "I want to get my title back from your girlfriend."

"I'll start." CJ said. "I lay one card face down. Go."

"I lay one card face down and summon Red Gadget (ATK: 1300), which lets me add Yellow Gadget to my hand." Yugi said, summoning a red machine monster. "Red Gadget, attack!"

"I reveal my trap: Sakuretsu Armor!" CJ said. "This destroys Red Gadget!"

"I end my turn." Yugi said.

"I pass." CJ said. "Go."

"I summon Yellow Gadget (ATK: 1200) and add Green Gadget to my hand." Yugi said, summoning a yellow version of his Red Gadget. "Yellow Gadget, attack!" CJ stumbled as he was attacked by Yugi's gadget (LP: 4000 - 1200). "Go."

"I summon Queen's Knight (ATK: 1500)." CJ said, summoning a blond female warrior in red armor. "Queen's Knight, attack Yellow Gadget!" Yugi smiled as CJ's knight cleaved his gadget monster in half (LP: 4000 - 400).

"Wow..." Tea said.

"Wow what?" Tristan asked.

"This duel seems so evenly matched." Tea said.

"Of course." Kylie said. "CJ got Yugi down to 200 life points in their last duel, remember?"

"Oh yeah." Tea said. "I remember that duel. I thought Yugi was gonna lose his title that day."

"Yeah, but he managed to win." Joey said.

"Wanna place bets on this one?" Tristan chuckled.

"Your move, Yugi." CJ said.

"I summon Green Gadget (DEF: 600)." Yugi said, summoning a green monster identical to his two previous gadgets. "Go."

"I lay two cards face down." CJ said. "Queen's Knight, attack Green Gadget!! Go."

"I activate Exchange!!" Yugi said. "Now, we get to look at each other's hands and take a card." CJ revealed his hand. "I'll take Premature Burial." CJ then looked at Yugi's hand.

"I'll take Dark Magician." CJ said.

"Now, I activate Premature Burial (LP: 3600 - 800) to revive Green Gadget (ATK: 1400)." Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon Kaiser Sea Horse (ATK: 1700)." CJ said, summoning a warrior in blue and purple armor. "Attack Green Gadget!!" Yugi stumbled back as Kaiser Sea Horse destroyed his Green Gadget (LP: 2800 - 300). "Queen's Knight, attack Yugi directly!!" Yugi gasped as Queen's Knight stabbed him (LP: 2500 - 1500). "Go."

"I discard a card to summon a monster known as The Tricky (ATK: 2000)." Yugi said, summoning a jester-like monster in a yellow and black jumpsuit. In the center of its chest was a red question mark, and it wore a blue cape. "Tricky, destroy Kaiser Sea Horse!" CJ watched as his monster was destroyed (LP: 2800 - 300). "Go."

"I summon King's Knight, which lets me automatically summon Jack's Knight." CJ said, summoning two male knights. The first wore orange armor and the second wore blue armor. "Next, I activate Polymerization, fusing my three knights to summon my ultimate knight..." Yugi watched as CJ's three knights combined into a larger knight with purple hair, and black and gold armor. "Come forth, Arcana Knight Joker (ATK: 3800)!! Go."

"I pass."

"Now, my Joker, attack The Tricky and bring an end to this duel!!"

"I reveal my trap: Spellbinding Circle, weakening your Joker (ATK: 3800 - 700) and stopping its attack!!" Yugi shouted, revealing his trap.

"I can't believe this duel." Tea said. "I can't even begin to try and predict the winner."

"Of course." Joey said. "Yugi was the King of Games and CJ is the mentor of the only duelist to beat Yug in a duel."

"I end my turn." CJ said.

"I summon Queen's Knight (ATK: 1500) and lay a card face down." Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon Big Shield Gardna (DEF: 2600)." CJ said, summoning a black-haired warrior carrying a large shield. "Go."

"I summon King's Knight (ATK: 1600) which lets me automatically summon Jack's Knight (ATK: 1900)." Yugi said, summoning two more knights.

"Wow... Both of them played the same combo..." Joey said.

"They really are evenly matched." Tea said.

"Of course." Kylie said. "CJ's built his deck specifically to beat Yugi's."

"I end my turn." Yugi said. "Go."

"I activate Gravekeeper's Servant!" CJ said. "Now, in order for you to attack, you must discard the top card from your deck. Go."

"I sacrifice King's Knight, Queen's Knight and Jack's Knight..." Yugi said, holding up a card.

"A god card..." CJ smiled.

"Almighty protector of the sun and sky...

I beg of thee, please hear my cry...

Transform thyself from orb of light...

And bring me victory in this fight...

I beseech thee... Grace our humble game...

But first I shall... Call out thy name!!

WINGED DRAGON OF RA (ATK: 5000)!" Yugi said, as the sacred golden god card took to the field. CJ smiled at the sight of it.

_The first one has been summoned..._ He thought.

_I don't dare risking my cards, so I'll hold off my attack. Once I have all three god cards, then I'll go all out against CJ._ Yugi thought.

"Oh wow... CJ's up against The Winged Dragon of Ra." Tea said.

"I know. And, it's powerful..." Joey said.

"And..." Kylie said. Everyone looked at her. "It's the card that Yugi beat CJ with before. Let's see if things turn out differently this time." _And I hope they do. I want to face my mentor in the final match. It would be the ultimate test of my skills..._

"Your move, CJ." Yugi said.

"I summon Gemini Elf (DEF: 900)." CJ said, summoning his elves. "Go."

"I activate Tricky Spell 4!" Yugi said. "I sacrifice The Tricky to summon 3 Tricky Tokens (DEF: 1200 [x3]). Go."

"I sacrifice my three monsters to summon... The Wicked Avatar (ATK: ????)!!!" CJ exclaimed, as his three monsters vanished and were replaced by a glowing black sphere. "And, my Wicked Avatar's attack points are 100 points higher than the strongest monster in play (ATK: 5100). Go."

"I sacrifice my three Tricky Tokens to summon Obelisk The Tormentor (ATK: 4000)!!" Yugi said, as the second Egyptian god appeared on the field. "Go."

"I summon a defense monster and lay one card face down." CJ said. "Go."

"I summon Big Shield Gardna (DEF: 2600)!" Yugi said, summoned the same shielded warrior as CJ. "Go."

"Another defense." CJ said. "Go."

"Monster Reborn to bring back Summoned Skull (ATK: 2500)!" Yugi said, as his skeletal fiend took to the field. "Go."

"A third defense." CJ said. "Go."

"I summon Kuriboh (DEF: 200)." Yugi said, summoning a brown furball monster with green claws. "Go."

"I sacrifice my three monsters to summon The Wicked Dreadroot (ATK: 4000)." CJ said, summoning a fiendish version of Yugi's Obelisk the Tormentor. "Now, his ability cuts the attack and defense of all monsters in half, except itself (Avatar's ATK: 2600) (Ra's ATK: 2500) (Obelisk's ATK: 2000) (Gardna's DEF: 1300) (Kuriboh's DEF: 100) (Skull's ATK: 1250). Now, go."

"I sacrifice my three monsters to summon Slifer the Sky Dragon (ATK: 2000)." Yugi said, summoning the red dragon Egyptian god. "Next, I play Card of Sanctity. Now, we each draw until we have six cards in our hands, raising Slifer's attack (ATK: 6000)."

"Except Dreadroot's effect halves Slifer's attack (ATK: 3000)." CJ said. "And, now, since Slifer is the strongest monster on the field, Avatar grows stronger (ATK: 3100)."

"I end my turn." Yugi said.

"I summon a defense." CJ said. "Go."

"I activate Swords of Revealing Light!" Yugi said. "Go."

"I summon a defense and activate The Shallow Grave, letting us each summon a monster in defense mode from our graveyard." CJ said. "Go."

"I pass." Yugi said.

"I sacrifice my three monsters to summon The Wicked Eraser (ATK: ????)!!" CJ said, summoning his mechanical serpent-like dragon. "Now, he gains 1000 attack and defense for each card your control (ATK: 6000), but he's weakened by Dreadroot's ability (ATK: 3000)."

"Impressive..." Yugi said. "The Egyptian gods versus The Wicked gods..."

"Let's see who wins."

"Indeed." Yugi said.


	28. Epilogue: Battle of the Heart

_Previously on Yu-Gi-Oh!:_

"_This is it, Yug." CJ said. "The day you lose your Egyptian gods."_

"_Don't count on it." Yugi said. "I want to get my title back from your girlfriend."_

_-_

"_I sacrifice King's Knight, Queen's Knight and Jack's Knight..." Yugi said, holding up a card._

"_A god card..." CJ smiled._

"_Almighty protector of the sun and sky..._

_I beg of thee, please hear my cry..._

_Transform thyself from orb of light..._

_And bring me victory in this fight..._

_I beseech thee... Grace our humble game..._

_But first I shall... Call out thy name!!_

WINGED DRAGON OF RA (ATK: 5000)!" Yugi said, as the sacred golden god card took to the field. CJ smiled at the sight of it.

_The first one has been summoned... He thought._

_-_

"_I sacrifice my three monsters to summon... The Wicked Avatar (ATK: ????)!!!" CJ exclaimed, as his three monsters vanished and were replaced by a glowing black sphere. "And, my Wicked Avatar's attack points are 100 points higher than the strongest monster in play (ATK: 5100). Go."_

"_I sacrifice my three Tricky Tokens to summon Obelisk The Tormentor (ATK: 4000)!!" Yugi said, as the second Egyptian god appeared on the field. "Go."_

_-_

"_I sacrifice my three monsters to summon The Wicked Dreadroot (ATK: 4000)." CJ said, summoning a fiendish version of Yugi's Obelisk the Tormentor. "Now, his ability cuts the attack and defense of all monsters in half, except itself (Avatar's ATK: 4100) (Ra's ATK: 2500) (Obelisk's ATK: 2000) (Gardna's DEF: 1300) (Kuriboh's DEF: 100) (Skull's ATK: 1250). Now, go."_

"_I sacrifice my three monsters to summon Slifer the Sky Dragon (ATK: 2000)." Yugi said, summoning the red dragon Egyptian god. "Next, I play Card of Sanctity. Now, we each draw until we have six cards in our hands, raising Slifer's attack (ATK: 6000)."_

"_Except Dreadroot's effect halves Slifer's attack (ATK: 3000)." CJ said. "And, now, since Slifer is the strongest monster on the field, Avatar grows stronger."_

_-_

"_I sacrifice my three monsters to summon The Wicked Eraser (ATK: ????)!!" CJ said, summoning his mechanical serpent-like dragon. "Now, he gains 1000 attack and defense for each card your control (ATK: 6000), but he's weakened by Dreadroot's ability (ATK: 3000)."_

"_Impressive..." Yugi said. "The Egyptian gods versus The Wicked gods..."_

"_Let's see who wins."_

"_Indeed." Yugi said._

**EPILOGUE: Battle of the Heart**

"Your move, Yugi." CJ said.

"I pass." Yugi said.

"Time to end this, Yugi." CJ said.

"Oh really?" Yugi asked.

"There's a reason Kylie beat you..." CJ said. "I play Giant Trunade, returning all spells and traps on the field to their owner's hand. Next, I play Lightning Vortex and discard a card to destroy all your face up monsters."

"Too bad they'll return next turn." Yugi said.

"There won't be a next turn." CJ said. "Avatar, destroy that defense!! Now... Wicked Dreadroot!! Attack Yugi directly and end this duel!!" Yugi gasped as The Wicked Dreadroot shot a fireball at him, obliterating his life points.

"Wow... Nice duel, CJ." Yugi said. "Here... My Egyptian god cards." CJ smiled as he took the Egyptian gods.

"Attention everyone!" Kaiba shouted. "The final match... CJ Francis VS Kylie Howard will begin in 45 minutes... And it will be a title match!!" CJ walked over to Kylie.

"Prep your deck, babe." He said. "We're going all out on this one."

"Deal." Kylie said. "I'll come at you with my best deck."

"I would expect nothing less." CJ said. "It's time to test you and see how much you've learned." The two then headed back to their rooms and began to prepare their decks.

_**Later...**_

CJ and Kylie stood face to face in the arena, Duel Disks active.

"Ready, Kylie?" CJ asked. "I've changed my deck. I'm using a completely different deck than I've used during this whole tournament. This duel is gonna test your skill as a duelist, and your speed. This deck I'm using is built to win fast, so you're gonna need to take me out quickly."

"Okay, then..."

"LET'S DUEL!!" Both exclaimed.

"I'll start!" CJ said. "I activate Dian Keto the Cure Master to boost my life points (LP: 5000). Next, I play Painful Choice! Now, I choose five cards from my deck. You then choose one to add to my hand, and I send the rest to the graveyard." CJ held up five cards.

_Wait a sec... 4 pieces of Exodia and Destiny Board?_ Kylie wondered. _If I choose a piece of Exodia, I can get rid of Destiny Board._ "I choose Left Arm of the Forbidden One."

"I lay two cards face down and summon a defense." CJ said. "Go."

"I summon Lord of Dragons (ATK: 1200)." Kylie said, summoning a warrior in gold armor and blue cape. "Next, I play Flute of Summoning Dragon to Special Summon Baby Dragon (ATK: 1200) and Lava Dragon (ATK: 1600)." Then, a small orange dragon and a purple dragon with eight legs appeared on her field. "Lava Dragon, attack that defense! Lord of Dragons, Baby Dragon, attack CJ directly!!" CJ chuckled as he was attacked by Kylie's monsters (LP: 4000 - 2400). "Now, I discard Thunder Dragon to add two Thunder Dragons to my hand. Go."

"I summon Dark Crusader (ATK: 1600) and attack Baby Dragon!" Kylie watched as her dragon was destroyed (LP: 4000 - 400). "Go."

"Lava Dragon, attack Dark Crusader! Lord of Dragons, attack CJ!" CJ stumbled as Lord of Dragons blasted him (LP: 1600 - 1200). "Go."

"I activate Dark Hole and end my turn!" Kylie watched as her monster exploded.

"I play Polymerization to fuse my Thunder Dragons into Twin-Headed Thunder Dragon (ATK: 2800)." Kylie said. "But, since Battle City rules prevent my fusion monster from attacking, I end my turn."

CJ drew a card and smiled. "I'm impressed. You got me down to 400 life points, but it wasn't enough. I activate Backup Soldier to add three monsters with an attack of 1500 or less to my hand from my graveyard. Now..." CJ placed five cards on his Duel Disk and Kylie gasped. "I summon Exodia the Forbidden One!!"

"No... No way!!" Kylie gasped as Exodia's effect activated, ending the duel (LP: 0).

"The winner... And King of Games... CJ Francis!!"

"Wow, CJ... You beat her in no time flat." Yugi said.

"Of course. I wanted to really test her." CJ said.

"Here." Kylie said, holding out a card. "Take my Five-Headed Dragon."

"No." CJ said. "I gave you that card as a gift. I'm not taking it back."

_**Later...**_

CJ and Kylie sat in the living room at CJ's house. CJ had his arm around Kylie's shoulder and they were watching TV.

"That was an excellent duel." CJ said.

"Yeah." Kylie said. "And, I almost beat you."

"Yeah. I'm very proud of you." CJ said. "You beat Yugi in a duel, made it all the way to the Battle City Finals, beat Solomon, and you almost beat me. You're a great duelist."

"Thanks." Kylie said.

"You're welcome." CJ said, kissing Kylie on the cheek.


End file.
